San Miguel is set to put more than $1 million in federal funding toward a new emergency operations center as the North County community prepares for continued population growth.
U.S. Rep. Jimmy Panetta (D-Carmel Valley) announced the funding on Sept. 29 alongside San Miguel Fire Chief Scott Young, Assemblymember Dawn Addis (D-Morro Bay), and local law enforcement representatives.
The $1.03 million in Community Project Funding comes through the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Emergency Operations Center Grant Program and will pay for the emergency operations center portion of a proposed expansion adjacent to San Miguel’s existing fire station.
“Emergency operations centers can act as a central nervous system for our community during major disasters,” Panetta said. “That’s why I’m proud to have secured more than $1 million in federal funding for an emergency operations center to be located at a new firehouse in San Miguel.”
The award covers only part of a much larger project.
When the San Miguel Community Services District proposed the expansion in 2024, it sought $8.75 million to design and construct a 5,200-square-foot, two-story facility. Plans include administrative and operational space, living quarters for fire personnel, report writing space for the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office, a community meeting area, and flexible space that would serve as an operations center during a disaster.
Young said the existing station lacks the space and infrastructure needed to serve a community that has more than doubled in recent years.
San Miguel’s population increased from 1,427 residents in the 2010 census to 3,172 in 2020, according to Young. The community could see additional growth from proposed developments totaling approximately 300 single-family homes and 60 multifamily units within the Community Services District.
“With this continued growth comes the responsibility of enhancing our emergency response services, facilities, and equipment,” Young said. “Our current fire station lacks space, separation requirements, infrastructure, and functionality needed to support an expanding community.”
San Miguel also lacks a dedicated facility for coordinating responses to large-scale emergencies. During a wildfire, flood, earthquake, or other disaster, the proposed center would provide a central location for the fire department, Cal Fire, California Highway Patrol, Sheriff’s Office, and other agencies to coordinate personnel and equipment and share information with the public.
Panetta pointed to the Plaskett and Timber fires burning in Big Sur as recent examples of why such coordination matters.
“When disasters strike, it’s an all-hands-on-deck reaction by our firefighters and law enforcement officers at every level,” Panetta said. “That’s why coordination, communication, and integration are important for the success of that type of unified response.”
Addis said the facility could become more important as the Central Coast faces wildfires and severe winter storms.
“As wildfires continue to increase in intensity and winter storms become more aggressive across the Central Coast, a local emergency operations center will give the San Miguel Fire Department the tools and coordination capacity it needs to respond to complex emergencies,” Addis said.
The federal award is still moving through FEMA’s process, Young said, but appears to be on track.
“This funding will help place San Miguel Fire on the path forward,” he said, “allowing us to better serve the needs of our community, our county, and our state with reliable emergency services well into the foreseeable future.” ∆
This article appears in Oct 1-8, 2026.
