Muncie council OKs start of $11.5 million process to finance new Fire Station No. 5

The Muncie City Common Council on a majority vote authorized staff to begin the process to finance a proposed new Fire Station No. 5, taking the first formal step toward a petition-driven bond issue that bond counsel said would be sold through the Muncie Building Corporation. The preliminary resolution sets a not-to-exceed borrowing amount of $11,500,000 and permits circulation of the statutorily required taxpayer petition.

Dennis Hahn, bond counsel with Bose McKinney & Evans, told the council the approval tonight simply starts the financing process: staff will circulate a taxpayer petition (the statute requires at least 50 taxpayers to sign), have the county auditor certify the signatures, and then return to the council with an ordinance and a required public hearing. Hahn said the bonds would be issued by the building corporation and leased to the city; when the bonds are repaid the station will become the city’s property.

Developer Greg Martz said the budget for the project has been established and described the procurement and closing steps that follow: appraisal and title work for the real estate, potential marketing strategies (underwriter or direct placement), and a bond pricing and closing schedule. Martz said the financing model commonly used for similar public projects protects the city from future construction cost escalation in the developer-operated build/operate/transfer arrangement: “the $11,500,000 budget is guaranteed,” he said.

Chief Burford described operational reasons for the new station. He told the council the existing Tillotson facility dates to the mid-1960s, has aging infrastructure (including asbestos-wrapped plumbing chases and failing drains), and that the new station would allow the department to base an aerial ladder closer to Ball State University and the hospital. The chief and the developer said temporary housing and apparatus arrangements would be part of the construction plan so operations remain covered while the new facility is built.

The council’s adoption of the preliminary resolution does not authorize bond issuance; it authorizes staff to circulate petitions and proceed through the statutory steps. If petition certification and a subsequent ordinance are approved, the full financing documents, trustee arrangements and bond closing would return for council review and public hearings.

Council members and the public raised questions about timing, transparency, and whether local institutions might provide contribution or in-kind support; Mayor Dan Ridenour said discussions with major local partners have been held and characterized them as “very close.” The bond counsel and developer said the council will see the project multiple times before any bonds are sold, and that the council will hold a public hearing on the petitioned financing before an approval vote.