A moment of silence was observed during Monday’s Estes Valley Fire Protection Board meeting to honor the victims of a shooting that occurred on Canfield Mountain in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, on Sunday, June 29. Two firefighters were killed and another was injured in an ambush.
The EVFPD Board also voted unanimously to request regular police protection at its meetings and will review the situation at the first board meeting in 2026.
Board member Jeff Robbins commented that “given what we have seen in the news,” having a police presence at EVFPD meetings was a wise move.
Board member Scott Dorman, who had served as the EVFPD chief from 1996 to 2016, said it was a “shame for our society,” but after the events in Idaho, he concurred that a police presence was prudent.
Using the word “sad,” both Dorman and Board President Sandra Smith expressed concern that the circumstances warranted such a measure. Smith said it was necessary to be proactive, and Ryan Leahy, a former member of the fire department who was elected to the board in May, stated that the Board wants everyone attending the meetings to feel safe.
A member of the Estes Park Police Department is routinely present at the Town Board meetings held at Town Hall, and since December, at the public board meetings of the Park Hospital District. No other public boards routinely have a police presence.
Although more than 15 people attended the board meeting, no one stepped forward to offer public comments. An opportunity for public comments was not provided during the special meeting held on June 23, when the Board voted unanimously to place Chief Paul Capo on administrative leave.
Steve Dazzio, of Dazzio and Associates, a certified public accounting firm in Centennial, Colo., presented the board with a 99-page audit of the 2024 budget. According to Dazzio, the EVFPD is in solid financial shape. The District’s assets and deferred outflows exceeded liabilities and deferred inflows of resources by $4,268,092 at the close of the fiscal year. The District’s total expenditures for 2024 in the General Fund exceeded the original appropriation by $89,635. This was primarily attributable to capital fleet expenditures. Per state law, the District amended the budget to accommodate the additional spending costs.
The Board appointed Jon “Hippy” Smith and Robbins as a subcommittee to develop a compensation plan for Jason Dillingham, Division Chief of Operations and Training, and Lt. Stacey Sutherland, who have been named as co-chiefs during the period that Chief Paul Capo is on paid administrative leave. Their recommendation will be made at the next Board meeting on July 14.
In an interview following the meeting, Smith said she could not comment on how long it was expected that Capo would be on administrative leave. “The Board cannot discuss the personnel investigation other than to say that the independent investigators are conducting the investigation in a thorough and robust manner.”
Also on the agenda for Monday’s meeting, but not addressed, was the 2025 Strategic Plan and Management Implementation Guide. Smith told the Estes Valley Voice that the Board will hold a working session in the next few weeks to discuss the plan in detail.