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Flagstaff chiefs ask council to explore new revenue for staffing, facilities and technology
Summary
Fire and police chiefs told council the citys traditional revenue sources cannot fully cover rising staffing, equipment and facility costs; chiefs requested direction to evaluate funding strategies that could include taxes, fees or reallocation of existing funds.
Fire and police leadership urged the Flagstaff City Council on Friday to authorize staff to study new funding options to cover growing public-safety needs, citing rising call volumes, aging facilities and technological demands.
Fire Chief Mark Gaillard told council the department is managing increased emergency medical and wildland response demands and that the citys existing general-fund resources and typical revenue sources will not be enough to staff, equip and build the facilities the department needs. "The traditional revenues that you all are wrestling with... are insufficient to address what these future needs are," Gaillard said.
Gaillard organized the public-safety needs into three broad buckets: staffing, equipment and technology, and capital facilities. Staffing needs include additional daily firefighters and…
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