Like most other volunteer departments in the United States, in the 2010's Santa Clara started to see a sharp increase in the number of calls for service, but a decrease in the number of volunteers available to respond to calls. As experienced volunteers retired, the burden of the additional calls was increasingly being borne by the paid staff of the district. In order to address this issue, Chief Wood and the Santa Clara Board of Directors started exploring different options for alleviating the stress on the few paid staff that the district employed.
One of the earliest options that was explored by the Board was contracting with the City of Eugene for services. However, this would have necessitated a large increase in tax rate for the district that was not considered realistic. Another option that the Board considered was hiring on additional firefighters for Santa Clara in order to ensure that there was a paid crew ready to respond 24/7. However, this option was also too expensive for the district to realistically afford.
A third option that the Board considered, and ultimately decided on, was to contract with Lane Fire Authority for services. Unlike the City of Eugene, Lane Fire Authority was willing and able to contract for an amount that SCFD could afford without raising taxes. Santa Clara employees would become Lane Fire Authority employees working out of nearby LFA Station 115. This would allow LFA to staff a 24/7 ALS engine company that would respond to calls in SCFD.
After careful consideration, the Santa Clara Board of Directors decided to enter into an Intergovernmental Agreement with Lane Fire Authority. The Board signed the contract in May, 2018 with an effective date of 7/1/2018.