Hutto City Council authorized the city manager Oct. 1 to notify Williamson County Emergency Services District No. 3 of the city's intent to provide fire services.
This is part of Hutto's ongoing discussion about creating a municipal fire department.
The details
Council voted 6-1 to authorize City Manager James Earp to send a formal notice of intent to ESD 3 stating that newly annexed properties are intended to be covered under a future municipal fire service plan.
The Texas Health and Safety Code states that cities must notify ESDs of their intent to provide fire services in newly annexed areas within 30 days of the annexation.
Recently, the city has voted to annex two such properties, according to city documents. On Sept. 3, City Council annexed a retail site, located at the southwest corner of Limmer Loop and Merger Lane, and on Oct. 1, it annexed 18.733 acres known as the Hutto Tech and Trade Center west of CR 119.
Council members noted that sending the notice does not guarantee or obligate the city to complete or implement a fire service plan.
Additionally, the vote authorized Earp to register domain names and secure website services for potential fire services to prevent outside parties from acquiring relevant web addresses.
The discussion
Council member Corina Zepeda voted no on the item.
“We've been talking about building a station, maybe two,” Zepeda said. “We had a consultant to give us pricing. We haven't received that yet. We don't know the full cost of operating over five, 10, 20 years, which is what is being worked through right now with staff. So I don't want to give the misimpression to the public, even to ourselves, that somewhere during this process we have voted to even do fire services.”
Mayor Mike Snyder said his intent is to vote to have a city-owned fire station.
“Unless something massive comes out, my vote is to proceed with the fire station,” Snyder said. “I've already talked to the city manager about a great spot for fire station number two because I see no other way than to do it this way.”
The background
In May, Hutto City Council directed the Hutto Economic Development Corporation to move forward with a new fire station near the Hutto Megasite and establish a city-owned fire department.
At a July meeting, council members discussed the topic further. The council approved an amended motion directing the EDC to pursue a consultant to provide the long-term financial and operational costs of a city-owned fire department.
Snyder said a primary driver for creating a municipal department is capturing local sales tax revenue from large commercial projects and retaining direct control over municipal development approvals.
