Pearland and Friendswood are facing challenges in meeting the increased need for fire and emergency medical services as the population in the area continues to grow.
Call volume has increased in each city over the past three years, and both fire/EMS departments have new facilities in the works to better serve the growing communities. Future staffing plans and station locations also target maintaining a low response time, officials said.
“Within a five-year period we’re going to see our call volume increase somewhere between 1,000-1,200 additional calls [per year],” said Rick McFee, Friendswood Volunteer Fire Department president and CEO. “[That is] added on to our already almost 3,000 calls per year.”
Addressing rapid growth
Pearland celebrated the opening of Fire Station No. 3 on Jan. 11 at the intersection of FM 518 and Yost Boulevard. The Pearland Fire Department—which combined with the city’s EMS in 2013—will open a new Fire Station No. 2 in 2016 at Fite and Harkey roads, officials said.
An additional new facility is in the city’s five-year capital projects plan, Pearland City Manager Clay Pearson said. The project—which is in the design phase—will relocate Fire Station No. 1 to the northeast corner of McHard and Old Alvin roads. Construction is expected to begin sometime in fiscal year 2016-17, Pearson said.
The sites of the relocated fire stations are more central to its service area, Pearland Mayor Tom Reid said. Reid—who estimates about three additional stations within the next 10-12 years—said identifying the central point of the projected population increase will determine any future facility.
The PFD has been dealing with rapid population growth for many years. Including the city’s extra territorial jurisdiction in Brazoria and Harris counties, the department serves nearly 140,000 people across 75 square miles, Pearland Fire Chief Vance Riley said.
“It is a challenge for any fire department to handle a rapidly growing population,” he said. “The demand for services increases and stretches existing resources.”
Reid said the population grew by about 6,800 last year. Although he said providing fire/EMS services was another challenge of an increasing population, he credited the department for managing the added stresses.
“The rapid population growth did, at times, exceed our resources,” Riley said. “But new resources have been added in recent years, and we will continue to add resources to catch up with the growth.”
Prepping for a new station
City plans for future with new fire facilities[/caption]
The FVFD, which includes EMS, is preparing for a new facility and an expansion to another. Fire Station No. 1—which is next to City Hall—will move next to the Public Safety Building off FM 528, officials said.
Fire Station No. 4 will be expanded by more than 1,700 square feet and become the new FVFD headquarters. Both the expansion and new construction were bond projects approved by voters in 2013.
Cities plan for future with new fire facilities[/caption]
Friendswood City Council approved a construction contract for both projects at its regular meeting Feb. 1. The new station is expected to open in the second quarter of 2017, McFee said.
McFee said the FVFD executive board—which meets monthly—began discussing operational plans for the future fire station alignment at its January meeting.
“The fire department is looking 14-15 months [ahead] to make sure that we’re prepared and that our service level doesn’t drop at all when the new station opens,” he said.
Because Friendswood’s model allows volunteers to respond to emergencies from their homes, the board is examining which stations will be closest in the new configuration.
While each station does not have a primary service area like Pearland, McFee said converting to a district model may be possible in the future.
McFee said the board is also prepping for an increased population with discussions about future additional staff. He said recently the department’s call volume has increased about 10 percent per year. More responders would address the FVFD’s biggest challenge: receiving multiple emergency calls within a short amount of time.
Additionally, equipment needs are part of the planning. McFee said the department could grow to about four ambulances in the next three years.
