Ten applicants submitted letters of interest by Friday’s deadline to fill three vacancies on the Jackson County Fire District 5 board of directors.

County commissioners reviewed the applications at a Tuesday work session.

Interested candidates run the gamut, from a retired Oregon State Police bomb technician, to a retired logger-turned-lawyer, to an IT tech, as well as current and former firefighters.

Commissioners did not make any decisions at the work session but directed Joel Benton, county counsel, to schedule interviews next Tuesday and Thursday. The commissioners can then make a final decision.

Commissioners Dave Dotterrer and Rick Dyer attended Tuesday’s meeting; Commissioner Colleen Roberts was absent.

The five-member Fire District 5 board was left with three empty seats — that is, without a quorum — after the abrupt resignation of three members on March 5.

Board Chair Vicki Purslow and board members Cary Halligan and Mike Winters resigned, one after another, just before the board was set to meet in executive session to discuss the possible investigation of Fire Chief Charles Hanley.

The resignations came after months of turmoil centered around union-represented employees’ loss of confidence in Hanley’s leadership and allegations that the chief tolerated and participated in bullying and harassment of district employees.

Under state law, if the majority of a board membership is vacant, the vacancies will be referred to the Jackson County Board of Commissioners for appointment.

Derek Volkart, a remaining board member, said he hoped commissioners would appoint just one of the vacant positions, allowing three board members to appoint the remaining two. Meanwhile, Fire District 5 Capt. Brady Graham, the International Association of Fire Fighters Local 2596 union president, hoped commissioners would fill all three seats.

Commissioner Dyer said in an interview in recent weeks that he felt the responsibility of filling the vacancies was given to commissioners “for a reason, so it’s up to us to make the board whole again.”

At Tuesday’s work session, Dotterrer said he worried about delaying the process much further, with the district unable to conduct business until the vacancies are filled, but both Dyer and Dotterrer said they preferred in-person interviews to appointing people based on applications alone.

Dyer said the commissioners had “a good problem” with some “really good candidates here.”

Here are the applicants for the three empty seats:

Gregory Alan Costanzo, retired Oregon State Police bomb technician and owner of ETHOS Training Academy in Phoenix, said in his application that he wanted to help “restore credibility to the board.”

“We need people that are willing to listen to multiple viewpoints, tackle difficult topics, and stand tall in the face of adversity. Walking out, quitting, or resigning in the midst of turmoil makes this feel personal for me,” Costanzo wrote.

Alfredo Echaide, an Ashland Fire & Rescue firefighter/paramedic, wrote that his experience in fire service would be a valuable asset and that he wanted to “assist the fire district with providing the best service to the community.”

Jennifer Hadden, director of cardiac life support at Asante Rogue Regional Medical Center’s education department, said in her application that her experience as a retired firefighter and paramedic would give her insight into the role. An Ashland resident, Hadden said she had watched, the “ebbs and flows of morale at the department and it seems that now it is at its lowest.” Hadden said one of her strengths is “finding common ground” with others.

Cynthia Jones, a retired disabled veteran, described herself as someone who is “not afraid to stand up for what is ethical and true.” Jones, whose brother Don Schmidt was an Almeda Fire victim, is a Talent resident, officer of a veteran’s motorcycle club and previously served in global inventory control for a large bio-medical research company in Eugene.

John Karns, fire chief of the Rogue Valley International Airport Fire Department and a former fire chief and city administrator of the city of Ashland, applied to fill a vacancy to assist in “rebuilding of the internal trust while improving the status of Fire District 5 within the regional fire department association,” his application said. “I understand and appreciate how important a highly functioning public safety organization is to a community.”

Former Phoenix Mayor Chris Luz applied for a vacancy citing his experience on multiple municipal boards, commissions and committees. Luz said in his application he has “great knowledge of public meeting laws and rules of order” and is fluent in the workings of government budgets. He is also fluent, he said, “in urban renewal laws and regulations and how the Phoenix and Talent (urban renewal agencies) impact JCFD5 funding via tax increment financing.”

Deric Manzi, an IT consultant who led a campaign in recent years against a proposed Talent Urban Renewal Agency plan “that would have siphoned millions of tax dollars away from JCFD5,” voiced concerns about recent allegations in the district.

Manzi wrote, “Given the recent allegations of bullying and sexual harassment combined with the rash of employees that have left the department, I am concerned that there are some things that need to be investigated.”

Al Muelhoefer, a retired U.S. Air Force colonel, cited his service as past president of Phoenix City Council, chair of the Phoenix Urban Renewal Agency and involvement with the Phoenix Oregon Chamber of Commerce. He said his duties as a board member would be to, “Know the staff, know the issues, ask questions, deliberate to achieve consensus.”

Retired attorney Robert Stone, a U.S. Air Force veteran, retired logger and long-time legal counsel for at least one special district, said his years as a blue-collar worker and attorney would help in his duties as a board member.

Stone wrote: “Citizen boards like this are not meant to be automatic rubber stamps for whatever an agency director requests, nor are they meant to micro-manage and second-guess everything the staff proposes. Instead, they are supposed to ask the logical questions that any reasonable resident would ask.”

Kevin Zimmerer, a Talent resident and director of Brim Aviation, described himself as a “problem solver with a quiet temperament.” In his application, Zimmerer cited his three decades in management roles, understanding of ethics laws and desire “to give back to my community” as assets.

Zimmerer said his role at Brim Aviation included four years of overseeing aircraft for the U.S. Forest Service and Oregon Department of Forestry. Zimmerer said he would “thoughtfully listen to various opinions before making decisions.”