Liberty Township Fire Chief James Reardon went before Powell City Council on Tuesday to detail the department’s growing need for a future levy to support its increasingly expensive operations.
“I’ve been the fire chief for just over a year-and-a-half, and there are four main topics that keep popping up on my radar: staying competitive, increased costs, the ability to plan, and then, unfortunately, we’re at a point of need at this point,” Reardon told the council to begin his presentation. “What I mean by staying competitive is we’re here to provide a service; we don’t provide a commodity. That service requires people to do that job, and the quality of people you have determines the level of service you provide. Today’s market is not about just finding the right people but how do you keep them?”
Reardon noted there are a lot of “lateral transfers” happening in the Columbus area, meaning people who have spent years with an agency are now leaving for other agencies for “a few more dollars or different benefits.”
“The problem is when people leave, they’re taking with them an incredible amount of knowledge, and the money that our agency has invested in them leaves as well,” he added.
According to Reardon, the department invested an average of $160,000 per firefighter in 2023 when accounting for salary, benefits, training, education and uniforms. He pointed out there are people in the department with more than 30 years of tenure, multiplying the investment made in the individual significantly while also amplifying the loss of resources if they leave.
Speaking on the increased cost of operations, Reardon said the cost of fire gear for a single firefighter has increased 81% since 2020. New fire trucks now cost approximately $1.2 million, an 89% increase since 2019, and ambulances cost an average of $450,000, which represents a 133% increase since 2021. The average maintenance cost of vehicles has grown to $172,000, a 274% increase since 2020.
As for the department’s ability to plan, Reardon said calls for service have increased by 38% since 2020, and the number of overlapping calls increased from 22% to 49% in 2023.
“Every other run, when one ambulance leaves, the other is leaving, too. That leaves no one available for the next one,” Reardon said.
Reardon added the department takes a number of calls determined not to be emergencies, and he suggested the community would benefit from a “community paramedic” who can respond to those calls rather than dedicating a firetruck or ambulance to those calls.
Ultimately, Reardon said the department has done very well to remain frugal through the years, but the cost to provide the services expected in the community is arriving at a level where “something has to give.”
“Since 2020, we’ve seen a 16% increase in population, a 36% increase in operational cost, and a 38% increase in calls for service,” Reardon said to close his presentation. “As costs continue to rise, our revenue does not (rise). The fire and EMS tax accounts for 4.7% of the property taxes collected in the city of Powell. … Overall, our costs have increased 67% in the life of this levy, which is 10 years. Eventually, the amount collected is not enough to pay for the inflationary cost of operations. We’ve maintained our current income for 10 years, and unfortunately, our primary source of funding does not include an inflationary mechanism. This is why we ask the board to go the voters for additional money this fall.”
Reach Dillon Davis at 740-413-0904. Follow him on X @DillonDavis56.
