Fire district adds firefighters, deals with financial issues

Despite the 10 cent cap per $100 of valuation and the constant threat of annexation— and therefore a shrinking taxable area—Emergency Service District No. 6 is hoping to expand its operations. The expansion would nearly double the number of fire stations in the area and would double the number of firefighters employed by the ESD. The increase in stations and manpower would allow the ESD to provide better service to its residents, said Robert Abbott, ESD No. 6 interim fire chief.

ESD No. 6 currently

ESD No. 6, also known as Lake Travis Fire and Rescue, covers about 140 square miles and serves a population of roughly 55,000. The fire department began in 1964 as the Hudson Bend Volunteer Fire Department and now has five full-time fire stations and one headquarters, 89 full-time employees and eight seasonal workers as well as an operations budget of $11.5 million for fiscal year 2012–13.

"A lot of people see that amount of money and think that it is a lot of money," Abbott said. "We have to pay for our legal staff and other things that city fire stations can share between departments. When you compare us to smaller city departments, you run into the problem that all the big capital expenditures come out of the city coffers for [small cities], whereas all of it comes out of our budget. It's a hard comparison to make."

The LTFR budget covers three divisions—operations, logistics and administration—of which 95 percent consists of the operations: firefighters, firetrucks, paramedics and more, Abbott said.

Adding fire stations and firefighters

"Down the road, we are planning to max out at nine or 10 fire stations," Abbott said. "We are looking at adding a station by the [Lakeway Regional Medical Center], down Hamilton Pool Road and the back side of Serene Hills [Drive]. We aren't looking to open fire stations tomorrow. We are in the process of procuring land in locations we might want to build. The next station we open won't be until 2017 or 2018 and will either be near Serene Hills or down Hamilton Pool Road."

Abbott said that LTFR has already procured property for the potential Serene Hills station and is in negotiations for the Hamilton Pool site. The department is still in the process of choosing a location near the [LRMC], he said.

Choosing locations can be a tricky job, Abbott said. LTFR is in direct competition with developers over parcels of land that could house fire stations.

"Choosing where a fire station goes is a little bit like a rubber band act," Abbott said. "If you put one too far down the street from another [station], it affects response times; if you put it too close, it diminishes the effectiveness of the other station. It's a science."

In addition to adding fire stations to the coverage area, Abbott said that LTFR is looking to have each of the fire stations manned with a four-person crew per shift. LTFR hired 12 new firefighters in February to near that goal. The ESD now has three of its five stations staffed with four-person crews.

"There are a certain [number] of things that need to be done quickly, usually within the first 120 seconds, of arriving on-scene that we need the resources to do," Abbott said. "When you put more firefighters on a truck, the efficiency goes up."

According to the International City/County Management Association, the effectiveness of a three-firefighter crew is only 38 percent and a four-firefighter crew is 65 percent. A five-firefighter crew is rated as 100 percent effective.

Simultaneous calls

"One thing we are battling right now is simultaneous calls," Abbott said.

A simultaneous call happens when one or more engines are working on a call when a second call comes in, he said.

"That could be for CPR, for fire, car accidents, you name it," Abbott said. "We have seen simultaneous calls increase from 28 percent in 2011 to 34 percent in 2012. That means the availability of units is questionable 34 percent of the time, which means we may have to find another available unit from a different station."

LTFR estimates that by 2018, the number of simultaneous calls in the area could increase to nearly 65 percent if no new stations or fire engines are added. That number would decrease as fire stations and firefighters are added, Abbott said.

Facing financial challenges

The biggest challenge LTFR faces is the 10 cent cap on property taxes, Abbott said.

"We try to do what we can with it," he said. "Most fire stations are at 10 cents, and we have been there for about a decade. We are always looking for more ways to increase our revenue and thus increase our services."

Abbott said that many ESDs throughout the state are finding out that it is difficult to fund an effective fire service for a growing population on a 10 cent cap.

"When you get to a certain level of population, they are going to demand a certain level of service," Abbott said.

The other major problem facing ESDs is annexation by the City of Austin.

"Even if annexation wasn't in our vocabulary, the 10 cent cap would be hard, but we are [getting by]," Abbott said.

Westlake Fire Chief Mike Elliot said that every ESD is facing annexation issues and that the more annexation that occurs, the less money is available for ESDs.

"You have to budget your money at 10 cents knowing that you are going to lose portions of that 10 cents due to annexation," Abbott said. "Most annexations are forecasted pretty far down the line, so when we do our strategic planning, we budget for that loss."

Possible solutions

To keep operating, LTFR has considered many ways to increase income and combat the 10 cent cap and loss of land because of annexation. One such way is to get ahead of the annexation, Abbott said.

"When [former Fire Chief] Jim Linardos was here, he didn't want us to fight the annexation. He wanted us to work well ahead of [the annexation] and find solutions, [so] when the annexation happens, it doesn't impact the services we provide and doesn't impact the workforce that we employ."

Another such solution would be for LTFR to sign a contract of service with Austin. Talks between the two have stalled, Abbott said, and although the contract might not happen this year, it may happen eventually.

"We are looking at every option we can," he said.