Contentious Key Peninsula Fire property plans

This curated list of articles focuses on contentious plans concerning properties owned by the Key Peninsula Fire Department. The articles highlight community disagreements regarding fiscal decisions and land use.

A buyer has plans to convert one of the properties into a gas station, prompting a petition from residents who have other ideas for the site. The fire department will fix the septic system at the site for about $24,000 as part of the sale.

Key Peninsula Fire Department respond to a trailer fire Tuesday Dec. 12, 2023.

NO. 1: THIS FIRE LEVY IS FACING STIFF OPPOSITION IN PIERCE COUNTY FOR THE FIRST TIME IN 14 YEARS

Some residents have raised concerns about the department’s fiscal transparency, following properties it bought in 2021. The levy isn’t connected, the fire district says. | Published July 23, 2024 | Read Full Story by Julia Park

The Key Peninsula Fire Department station in Key Center on Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2024. By Julia Park

NO. 2: TENSION, ANXIETY PLAGUE PIERCE COUNTY FIRE DISTRICT TRYING TO REBUILD TRUST BEFORE ELECTION

“I do lose sleep over that distrust,” one commissioner told The News Tribune. “I get terrible anxiety coming into these meetings.” | Published October 18, 2024 | Read Full Story by Julia Park

Alyssa Johnstone, 30, plans to bring a early learning center to the abandoned Key Peninsula Fire building in Key Center. By Aspen Shumpert

NO. 3: KEY PENINSULA FIRE DEPARTMENT PLANS TO SELL ONE OF ITS CONTENTIOUS KEY CENTER PROPERTIES

The parcel is one of three the department purchased with a $2.1 million bond in 2021. | Published January 30, 2025 | Read Full Story by Julia Park

The Key Peninsula Fire Department headquarters as well as a grocery store, post office, credit union, library, restaurants and other businesses are located in Key Center, a central business area pictured Wednesday, April 9, 2025, in Key Peninsula, Wash. By Julia Park

NO. 4: GAS STATION PLANNED FOR CONTROVERSIAL PIERCE CO. PROPERTY. LOCALS HAVE OTHER IDEA

Some residents are pressing the Key Peninsula Fire Department to make one of its long-vacant properties in Key Center into a community hub instead of selling it to a developer with plans for a gas station, should the sale fall through. | Published November 19, 2025 | Read Full Story by Julia Park

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The Key Peninsula Fire Department headquarters as well as a grocery store, post office, credit union, library, restaurants and other businesses are located in Key Center, a central business area pictured Wednesday, April 9, 2025, in Key Peninsula, Wash. By Julia Park

NO. 5: COULD SEPTIC ISSUE AFFECT PLANS FOR CONTROVERSIAL PIERCE COUNTY GAS STATION?

Septic system repairs are the next hurdle to the sale of a controversial public property on the Key Peninsula. | Published December 21, 2025 | Read Full Story by Julia Park

The summary above was drafted with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists in our News division. All stories listed were reported, written and edited by McClatchy journalists.