BY MARK J. CRAWFORD
The city of Starke has reportedly ruled out participation if the county commission approves a new special assessment for fire rescue funding.
The decision was revealed during discussion at the county commission’s July 2 meeting, during which commissioners voted to advance an ordinance imposing the fee to a final reading.
The Starke City Commission has not voted on the assessment as other municipalities have, but city representatives were present as county commissioners and staff discussed the ordinance before them last week.
No decision has been made on the amount of the assessment, but Starke’s refusal will raise the cost for other property owners paying to fund fire rescue services.
Hampton and Lawtey have demonstrated support for the special assessment, although Lawtey’s decision may hinge on the outcome of discussions about a renewed memorandum of understanding about the city’s fire station and the costs of maintaining it. Brooker was on the fence as of it’s June meeting, with concerns about whether a new fire station there would be fully funded.
Bradford County Fire Rescue Chief Ben Carter expressed confidence Brooker would approve the assessment since it would pay for the personnel needed to staff a fire station there.
While she had questions about who was opting in or out of the assessment and what the amount of the assessment would be, Commission Chairwoman Carolyn Spooner did not question the need for a fire assessment.
“I know in spirit we must do something, have some kind of assessment for our fire rescue. That’s a given. We have to. We can’t continue funding it under the same conditions that we have, but what that number ends up being is important,” she said.
Consultant Stantec reworked the numbers, which previously placed the assessment at $309 a year per residential dwelling unit (or 20 cents per square foot in nonresidential buildings) to recover more than $4 million for the fire department’s $4.85 million budget.
That was based on 10,656 dwelling units and nearly 5.86 million square feet of nonresidential building space. Subtracting the residential and commercial square footage from the city of Starke leaves 8,729 residential units and just 2.8 million square feet of nonresidential space.
This results in a new residential fee of $334 a year if the county commission went with 100% cost recovery — higher, but not significantly different without the city’s participation. But Carter acknowledged that neither commissioners nor the public were comfortable with funding the total amount.
The residential fee drops to $251 a year at 75% cost recovery, $167 at 50% cost recovery and $84 at 25% cost recovery.
Commissioner Diane Andrews asked about whether an assessment is fair for everyone. Attorney Rob Bradley explained there are different philosophies, and people can disagree about fairness. Ad valorem taxes, or property taxes, are assessed based on the value of a property minus any applicable exemptions. Those with higher value properties pay more.
A special assessment is determined based on the amount of money the government is trying to raise, and the cost is assessed equally within a property class, so everyone is paying the same amount for the same benefit. Regardless of whether someone lives in a $200,000 home or a $500,000 home, it costs the same amount to send a fire truck to either home.
Based on the Stantec study, which used county statistics, the assessment cost is weighted based on demand, and residential addresses are responsible for 68% of the calls for service.
Bradley explained that even after approving the first reading of the ordinance, all the commission’s options remain. It could decide against imposing the fee this year. It could also move forward, imposing a fee at any of the cost recovery percentages.
Commissioner Chris Dougherty talked about looking for a balance between raising the money necessary to fund fire protection, but also looking at what that budget should be and whether it should include fewer stations and personnel.
He used the state appropriation to place a fire station in Brooker as an example. Those type of appropriations ultimately wind up costing the county money because after the station is built, the county must continue paying for personnel, equipment and maintenance.
The county wants to provide a more responsive service, but commissioners must also consider how much the county can afford, he said.
Spooner said the assessment is needed, but determining the number will take further discussion.
There is time for discussion, but there is also a deadline. The board must finalize the assessment details in September if it is tie appear on tax bills this fall.
The ordinance was approved 4-0 on first reading with Commissioner Kenny Thompson absent.
Soil and water conservation board meets
The Bradford Soil and Water Conservation District will meet at 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday, July 16, at the Bradford County Extension Office, 2266 N. Temple Ave. in Starke.
The discussion of the potential impacts the Suwannee River Water Management District’s Edwards Bottomlands Project could have on flooding along Alligator Creek in Starke and the impacts of aquatic plants at the entrance to the Sampson River Canal on flooding around Lakes Crosby and Sampson will be continued.
These meetings are open to the public. Contact Paul Still at 904-368-0291 or [email protected] for more information.
