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The following is the next in a series of candidate interviews in advance of the Nov. 4 general election.

Voters in the Golden Gate and Big Corkscrew Island fire control and rescue districts will choose from two candidates for one seat on each of their three-member fire boards in the Nov. 4 general election.

Fire board races are non-partisan. The bid for Big Corkscrew Island Seat 2 will pit incumbent Donna Lihach against newcomer Eliseo Chao. The Golden Gate race for Seat 1 will feature incumbent Rob Stoneburner and challenger Bret Jameyson.

Donna Lihach

Lihach was appointed by Gov. Jeb Bush in 2000, elected to the post in November that year and re-elected again in 2004.

“I became interested in fire board as a citizen before I was actually on it,” says the retired Collier County Schools human resources specialist. “It was fiercely contested the first time, but I ran unopposed the second time around. I’m proud to be a fire commissioner and serve the community.”

Lihach says that while she does not have a fire service background, she has gained valuable experience serving on the board and working with administration. She says her service on various school committees such as SAC and PTA has also provided her with feedback and knowledge of her community.

“I am very passionate about this area,” said the 20-year Big Corkscrew district resident. “Thank God we haven’t had to cut personnel. Next year will be a lot tougher, but we’ll have to wait until then to look at things and figure out what to do. I think we’ve been really frugal as a fire board, so I couldn’t tell you where else we can cut the budget.”

Lihach says she favors consolidation only if it citizens across the county receive the same level of service.

“We have to have a consultant look at everything and be sure it would cost Big Corkscrew the same or less for the same fire service, if not better,” she says. “We wouldn’t want to move into a higher millage rate, since we just lowered ours to 1.8397.”

According to Lihach, the biggest concern facing the district may not being able to follow through on its 10-year expansion plan.

“We have to make sure Station 14 gets built so we can provide the coverage we need for the projected growth,” she said, adding that the board is currently looking at architectural and construction firms for final bids to build that station.

Lihach has three grown sons, including Michael, 23, who recently graduated from the Ft. Myers Fire Academy.

Eliseo Chao

Chao says he was inspired to run for fire board by longtime Big Corkscrew Island Chief Frank Kovaric, who died in March 2004.

“He encouraged me to stay in touch with the fire department where I live and asked me to serve,” Chao says.

In addition to being certified as a firefighter/paramedic since 1989, Chao has worked for Collier County EMS and served on a hazardous materials special operations team. He says his current job as a corporate safety director, overseeing more than 220 employees, qualifies him for fire board.

“I inspect equipment, write and enforce policies and procedures, mitigate claims and deal with general loss cases for everything from cable cuts to car accidents,” he explained.

Chao says he has not reviewed the district’s budget because he could not be a part of the current budget process.

When asked about consolidation of all county municipal and independent fire districts, Chao says he would have to be assured that such a move would be good for Big Corkscrew.

“You have to look at the big picture and consider the millage rates,” he says. “We’re not using the full millage rate, but we have functionality. Why would we want to buy into a district like Golden Gate that is struggling? My job is to do what’s best for Big Corkscrew, the firefighters and the people.”

According to Chao, the biggest issues facing the district is better manning of the district’s fire stations to serve constituents, providing mutual aid to Immokalee, reducing ISO ratings and avoiding overworking firefighters to exhaustion.

Chao, who founded a food and Bible ministry to serve Immokalee and other areas, does mission work several times a year across the U.S. and in Mexico and Cuba. A 17-year resident of Big Corkscrew, Chao and his wife Noemi have two children, Kristina, 19, and Alexandria, 17.

GOLDEN GATE

Rob Stoneburner

Stoneburner was appointed to Seat 1 by the board in December 2007. He says he decided to run to retain the seat because he believes in giving back to the community.

“If you live in an area and earn your living there, you should give back in some way,” he says. “I’m proud that the two commissioners who appointed me were my opponents in previous races. I think I earned some respect from running a clean campaign against them.”

A 25-year resident of the fire district, Stoneburner says the current budget has been cut to the bone.

“Next year, we may have to start looking at staff cuts, although my goal has been to avoid cutting jobs,” he says. “If you have no bodies to work, you have to shut down equipment. That affects response.”

As a business owner, Stoneburner says he brings a unique perspective to the board.

“I know what it means to make payroll and have overhead. I believe in fiscal responsibility,” he says.

According to Stoneburner, fear of the unknown is the biggest obstacle to fire consolidation.

“Nobody has all the facts,” he says. “The fire chiefs published a study that tackled logistics and concluded consolidation warrants an in-depth study. Basically, we have to spend money for a consultant to find the answers they can’t.”

As to a possible referendum on raising the district’s millage rate, Stoneburner says he won’t be jumping on that bandwagon.

“It’s the wrong thing to do unless you have the facts in front of you,” he says. “If we know there’s going to be a reduction of funding in the future, then we have to give choices to the citizens. But it’s not a static situation. That’s why we hired people who know these things to give us their best guess as to the long-range health of the district.”

On the possibility of expanding the fire district’s board to five members, Stoneburner says he sees no need to burden the district with the additional salaries and health benefits. “I’m fine with a three-member board calling the shots,” he says.

Stoneburner lives in the Estates with his wife Jennifer and daughter, Kamryn, 5.

Bret Jameyson

A seven-year Golden Gate resident, Jameyson says it is the district’s debt service that prompted him to run for a seat on the board.

“Eight million of it was for construction of the new station, but what happened to all the money they collected during the growth boom?” he asks.

Jameyson, a North Naples firefighter, says his understanding of the fire service, a degree in economics from Ohio State and experience as a hotel manager qualify him to serve.

“I know how to run a business,” he says. “All my background will make me a valuable commissioner.”

As a member of the GGFD Citizens Advisory Board, Jameyson believes the district’s budget would benefit by getting back to the basics of fire and rescue.

“Programs like CERT and education in the schools are wonderful, but it may be necessary to cut them,” he says. “The union worked with the department very well by not taking raises. At this time, I have no interest in raising the millage rate. The people have spoken pretty handily. It will be interesting to see what numbers come back from the study they approved last week.”

On the topic of fire district consolidation, Jameyson says it should have happened years ago, because there is too much duplication of effort.

“I don’t think we need seven chiefs and seven PIOs. We can give the same, if not better service for a better value than we do now, but an outside group will have to look at the consolidation effort. Ultimately, the people should decide,” he says.

If elected, Jameyson plans to ask the advisory board to look into expanding the fire board to five members.

Jameyson and his wife Nicole live in Pebblebrook Lakes with their children Olivia, 13, Ashlyn, 11, and Brody, 3.