Copper Canyon, Verde Valley will serve nearly 40K residents
By their power combined, two local fire districts are joining forces.
The Copper Canyon Fire & Medical Authority and Verde Valley Fire District governing boards unanimously approved a Joint Powers Authority on March 31 during a joint special meeting, setting the stage for a full merger that will serve nearly 40,000 people by July 1, 2027.
“It was exciting,” said Danny Johnson, VVFD’s fire chief since March 2021 who also became CCFMD’s fire chief in September 2023. “There’s been a lot of work that’s gone into it so far, but we have a lot of work ahead of us. This was really just the blessing to begin building. A lot of it will look the same as what we’ve already put forth but it just formalizes our process to move forward.”
Board members from both districts approved Resolution 2026-02 on March 31, launching consolidation. A JPA lets two or more fire districts merge operations under one authority while each district retains its legal identity and tax base.
“There’s a lot to do over the next year. We’ll basically be creating a new entity,” Johnson said. “The new entity and the fire authority will have to work with staff and firefighters to establish a name — so we know what to put on all the legal documents. We have to build our governance documents, bylaws and financial operations guides.”
The name of the new entity has not yet been determined; however it will have the same boundaries of the existing districts. VVFD serves about 104 square miles with about 22,242 residents in the town of Clarkdale, the Yavapai-Apache Nation, unincorporated Cornville and the unincorporated area surrounding Cottonwood. CCFD serves 520 square miles and around 17,730 residents in the Town of Camp Verde, unincorporated Rimrock, Beaver Creek and Lake Montezuma and their surrounding communities.
“The boundaries of both districts won’t change,” Johnson said. “It’ll just be a more efficient use of our resources to cover the larger district, and it gives us flexibility to move apparatus around on a daily basis.”
A formal final merger vote from both of the respective boards still needs to take place, and Johnson said he does not currently have an estimate on when that may occur.
“What each organization has to offer to each other is a depth of staff that each currently does not have, as well as opportunities for more professional development and opportunities across the organizations,” a 2025 JPA Study reads. “Due to where the stations are located and existing mutual/auto aid agreements, improved response times are not a significant reason for a JPA. However, if the organizations can work through the financial arrangements of a new organization in a way that provides stability to both organizations, without one being put at risk to the other, or one subsidizing the other, a successful JPA could be managed.”
Most of the cost savings from the merger would result from the elimination or by not having the need to fill duplicate job postings, according to the study.
Bond Improvements
In November, VVFD voters approved the issuance of $15.5 million in bonds for communication upgrades for firefighters and a new fire station in Clarkdale.
“We were able to get our bonds to the bond market, and VVFD was able to do the first sale of bonds,” Johnson said. “We were able to navigate a really interesting geopolitical climate with the market being so volatile. We were projecting an interest rate about 5%. We were able to get an interest rate around 4.2%,” on the first $10 million.
VVFD’s goal is to go out for the remaining $5.5 million within the next two years.
“We were in the process of looking for land in Clarkdale to find the land suitable to build on that has the infrastructure that we need for a fire station,” Johnson said. “That’s the first phase in that process. And then once we have land secured, then we’ll start the process for looking for a contractor and architects. … I’m hoping that we at least have an idea of land in the next couple months.”
