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Fire chief urges three new stations; council hears ESD role and ISO implications
Summary
Forney's fire leadership said response times have increased with growth and recommended adding stations; council discussed funding roles for the Emergency Services District (ESD) and the potential homeowner insurance impact of an ISO downgrade.
Forney's fire chief told the council May 20 that the city needs additional fire stations to keep response times within national standards and to preserve the community's favorable ISO rating.
"We added to Station 3. That actually decreased that time back down to 6 minutes," the chief said, recounting recent changes to response-time performance. He warned that response times had trended upward since 2019 as traffic and call volume increased and said the city needs additional stations to restore and maintain the department's target response times linked to ISO ratings.
The chief outlined a plan that would include four stations inside the city limits and four to five additional stations in the Emergency Services District (ESD) that covers developed areas outside city boundaries; the ESD, he said, currently funds about 50% of the fire department budget under a contract. The ESD is pursuing multiple station sites and can finance construction independently using ESD-authorized property tax levies, expanded sales tax options and debt issuance.
Council members asked how the city's choices affect homeowners. One councilmember urged staff to quantify the likely insurance-cost impact if the ISO rating worsened, saying that higher insurance costs may outweigh the debt cost for new stations. "If we don't build a fire station, then ISO rating drops, insurance rates go up," one councilmember said, urging staff to present that comparative analysis at the next workshop.
Staff and consultants flagged near-term next steps: identify priority station locations based on call volume and growth forecasts, coordinate with the ESD on timing and cost-sharing for construction and operations, and return with cost estimates and funding plan options.
Ending
Council requested that staff and consultants present station siting, construction cost estimates, and an analysis of how station changes would affect the city's ISO rating and resident insurance costs at the next meeting.
