UPDATE: The Shawnee City Council approved an increase on the mill levy. It is expected to pay for a new fire station and firefighters to run it. The council also added money to hire another police officer, a codes enforcement officer and a street inspector.
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ORIGINAL STORY
City Council is expected to a vote Monday on a proposal to raise property taxes, which would help pay for a new fire station.
If the proposal passes, it would mark the first increase in property taxes in about 10 years.
City leaders say the raise is needed to help address long emergency response times in the northwest quadrant of the city.
According to City Councilwoman Stephanie Meyer, Shawnee emergency crews aim for a response time of around four minutes or less. However, due to the lack of a close fire station, an emergency response in northwest Shawnee could take as long as 11 minutes.
This map shows the current emergency response times in the northwest quadrant of Shawnee, Kansas. (Map courtesy the City Manager's Office)
"If somebody has a medical emergency and it's taking that long, it could literally mean life or death," Meyer explained.
The proposal would raise city property taxes by an average of $8.60 a month.
Residents who live in northwest Shawnee, like Janis Tolly, support the proposal because of the impact on emergency response.
"Faster response time is obviously number one on our list of concerns," explained Tolly, who moved with her family to Shawnee around six years ago.
Tolly, who has three children, said she often worries about what would happen if there was ever a house fire.
"If there was a fire, I'm not sure how quickly we would get help," she explained. "If something did happen, what would happen to our house?"
The need for a fire station in the northwest quadrant has grown in recent years because of a population boom in that part of the city.
"For the last 10 years, we've seen an incredible explosion in population," Meyer said. "That part of the city is growing by leaps and bounds."
Because of the population increase and lack of a fire station in the area, emergency crews are seeing extra challenges responding to the northwest quadrant.
"The two fire stations that we have now in the more eastern part of town are being stressed to the max," Meyer said.
On Monday, the City Council will hold a public hearing on the proposal, followed by a vote on the matter.
If approved, the property tax increase would go into effect on Jan. 1, 2017.
This map shows the proposed emergency response times with a new fire station in the northwest quadrant of Shawnee, Kansas. (Map courtesy the City Manager’s Office)
While plans for a new fire station still need to be approved and formally planned out, Meyer said a proposed location is along 55th Street.
Aside from a new station being built, the proposal calls for 12 new firefighting positions to be filled.
The proposal would also add positions to several departments, including police, storm water, codes inspection and street maintenance.
The meeting is being held at Shawnee City Hall at 7:30 p.m. on Monday.
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Tom Dempsey can be reached at Tom.Dempsey@KSHB.com.
