Why I am running

By Michael A. "Mike" McReynolds

I have a family to love, and a business to run. I am not after the magnificent $100/mo salary, or the "power" associated with an office. So why run? All my family lives in the District. I want to provide the best fire/medical service possible.

1. I am the ONLY candidate endorsed by the Vista Fire Fighters Association. Why would they do that? The Vista Fire Protection Board does not determine the pay, or negotiate the contract for firefighters. Instead we have worked together over the past nine years, and they feel I am the best candidate. They are professionals who care about they people they protect, help, and serve everyday.

2. I am the ONLY candidate who was ASKED to run by BOTH the current board members and by city officials. Both sides feel I have the experience, leadership, common sense, and ability to accomplish our goals without confrontation or lawsuits.

3. I am experienced in dealing with people in a business environment to get things accomplished. By trade, I don't like politics. Howeverin my daily job, I have negotiated hundreds of contracts with large amounts of money. The Vista Fire Protection District is more of a business than political office. Medical services and fire protection are much too important to have decisions based on political influences, or paralyzed by disagreements. The most time the Board spends is dealing with the service provider, the City of Vista, who has budget problems and does NOT want to spend money on their own fire department.

When I left the board two years ago, things were rolling along nicely. Since then, the wheels have fallen off. The current Board majority has managed to alienate the service provider (City of Vista), to the point of having our contract for service terminated (both sides at fault).

Vista Fire Protection District itself is in great financial shape, more so than most or the 32 other districts. A major reason is the agreement we have with the City to provide us services at a portion of the cost of creating and maintaining our own Fire Department. The City in turn benefits greatly from our million dollars plus a year in revenue. This relationship has worked well for over 40 years. To allow one of our greatest assets to degrade this low is ridiculous.

If elected, I will help re-establish the beneficial relationship necessary to effectively conduct the District business. To achieve our purpose of providing the best fire/medical service, at the lowest price, we must manage the Vista Fire Protection like a business. It is NOT a land use agency, like BARC or a County Road Improvement Department, and to view it as such is to endanger its constituents. The fires of 2003 should have changed the focus of the Board. We need much more public fire awareness, disaster planning, and wildland/brush management interface planning. We need to be pro-active, and better listeners to the concerns of our residents. If elected, I will provide the leadership needed in these areas, for your family, and my own.