Eugene Council reviews options for Eugene–Springfield Fire governance; no decision made

On Oct. 22, 2025, during a 90‑minute Eugene City Council work session, City Manager Sarah updated councilors on two main governance options for the Eugene–Springfield Fire & EMS system: forming a new fire district (modeled on the Willakenzie Rural Fire Protection District) or creating an intergovernmental entity (IGE). Sarah told councilors, “you’re not gonna be asked to make a decision today,” and asked for feedback before she plans to make a recommendation in December.

Why it matters: the presentation framed governance choices around a single goal: a stable, efficient and scalable model that secures long‑term funding and improves staff capacity. Sarah cited persistent shortfalls — including an ambulance transport gap of roughly $1 million per year and the need for additional alternative‑response funding and stations — and said the system will need more resources regardless of governance path.

City Manager presentation and consultant work: Sarah said the city hired consultant AP Triton to evaluate five governance models and that AP Triton’s work emphasized that an IGE appeared most feasible. She focused her update on two options: (1) creating or annexing into a fire district and (2) forming an IGE. She emphasized her presentation was Eugene‑focused and did not present Springfield‑specific data.

Fire district (Willakenzie model): Sarah explained a new special district is a separate government with its own elected board and that, in Oregon, districts are typically funded primarily by property taxes. She used the Willakenzie Rural Fire Protection District rate of about $3.07 per $1,000 of real market value as an example. Under what she called a “maximum case” scenario — in which existing governments do not lower their tax rates — she estimated a district with that permanent tax rate could yield roughly $56.4 million annually within the district and said that amount represents about $12 million more in annual capacity than the city currently directs from its general fund for fire services. Sarah cautioned that property tax “compression” under Measure 5 (a general government cap of $10 per $1,000 of real market value) could cause some properties to hit limits and reduce revenue collected for some governments.

Formation steps and timeline for a district: Sarah listed likely steps to form a district or annex into one: needing interest from existing districts, multiple city council votes, a Metro Plan amendment and potential Lane County and Springfield actions, city code changes, arrangements over asset transfers and intergovernmental agreement cancellations, and a voter approval step. She said that forming a district is complex and estimated the process would likely take a minimum of four to five years.

Intergovernmental entity (IGE): Sarah described an IGE as a public municipal corporation that cities can create to delegate power and resources; it would typically be governed by representatives from member governments and possibly community members. An IGE would not have authority to raise property taxes but could be authorized to set fees and serve as a single employer for fire staff. Sarah said the consultant provided an eight‑page implementation checklist for an IGE and estimated formation would be greater than two years but shorter than the district timeline in many scenarios.

Financial tradeoffs and compression: Sarah walked councilors through examples showing how Measure 5 compression is calculated on real market value and how adding a new district tax rate could push some properties into compression, producing forgone revenue for local governments. Using her “maximum case” assumptions (no voluntary rate reductions by other governments), she showed a City of Eugene revenue loss in the first year of approximately $2.4 million due to compression effects while a district would still generate the larger district total noted above. She also noted that an IGE could raise revenue with a fee model that would apply to account holders (including some properties exempt from property tax, such as nonprofits and the University of Oregon) and might better enable phased increases.

Operational impacts: Sarah repeated that governance alone should not determine funding decisions and said the department needs resources for ambulance operations, community paramedicine, additional stations (roughly $3 million per station, she said), and administrative capacity (she cited roughly $5 million in immediate administrative assets identified in the AP Triton report). She and Chief Kaven said the operational merger and shared training already produce benefits in interoperability and wildfire response.

Council discussion: councilors generally thanked staff and firefighters and probed timelines, public appetite, revenue mechanics and equity. Councilor Groves said the presentation was “about as clear as you can make it” and emphasized the need for a plan to “catch up” funding over time. Councilor Clark said the fire department needs “a single organization that manages them” and more resources. Councilor Kaczynski asked whether either option would create independent administrative services (HR, IT, finance); staff confirmed both options involve separate administrative structures. Councilor Keating asked how often Eugene–Springfield crews respond in Willakenzie; Chief Kaven said Willakenzie is small and the combined system handles fewer than 1,000 calls per year in that district. Councilor Zelenka asked whether a district’s additional revenue would necessarily increase frontline service; Sarah said that is “not necessarily” the case because the new board would direct priorities and because asset transfers and administrative costs would also factor in. Councilor Evans asked whether an IGE could bond or levy; staff said an IGE itself would not have taxing authority (levies would remain a member government action) but member governments could authorize fees or levies as part of an implementation design.

Next steps and timing: Sarah said Springfield plans to discuss governance in mid‑November and that she intends to return to Eugene with a recommendation in December. She asked councilors what further information or barriers they want staff to analyze before a recommendation.

No formal action: the council did not take a vote or adopt a policy at the Oct. 22 work session. The discussion will continue at future council meetings and in parallel with Springfield’s process.

For reference: the presentation and discussion covered the consultant AP Triton’s work, the Willakenzie Rural Fire Protection District rate example, Measure 5 property tax compression (general government cap of $10 per $1,000 of real market value), and the Metropolitan Wastewater Management Commission as a governance example for an IGE.