Riverside Fire Chief Urges $293M Phase 1 to Cut Response Times, Add Stations and Personnel

Fire Chief Steve Mackenzie told the City Council on Jan. 13 that Riverside’s fire response system is stretched thin as calls and complexity increase and recommended a two‑phase master plan that would add staff, stations and equipment.

"If we do not act, we cannot maintain the level of service that the community expects," Mackenzie said in his presentation, which reviewed call-volume growth and national standards. He said the department handled about 44,670 calls in 2024 and had already exceeded 47,000 calls in the following fiscal year, while staffed strength remained about 225 firefighters for an estimated 325,000 residents.

The plan, based on a consultant study the chief described as a "master plan of response," shows current average response times above the department target of six minutes (Mackenzie cited a recent average of about 7:18–7:37). The report recommends a Phase 1 package to restore response‑time reliability: adding roughly 84 firefighters, relocating and renovating existing facilities, building two new stations, buying apparatus and investing in equipment and training. Mackenzie said Phase 1 would address the most urgent capacity gaps and that a longer Phase 2 would sustain the standard for future growth.

The staff presentation included an estimated Phase 1 budget of about $293.4 million and described a funding horizon that would stretch across the next decade. Mackenzie and the department framed the work as staged so that some investments could begin while other revenue sources and capital allocations are secured.

Multiple firefighters and longtime department employees spoke during public comment and urged the council to approve the plan. Mike Detoy, a career firefighter who said he has served since 2011, told the council the current system is "not sustainable" and that additional stations, equipment and personnel are needed now. Captain Shannon Smith, who said he attended as a resident, said delays can cost lives and urged faster action. Rafael Llamas, a paramedic and firefighter, described the plan as a necessary step to preserve service reliability.

Council members thanked the chief and department staff and acknowledged the difficult fiscal choices ahead. The presentation moved the topic into follow‑on budget and capital discussions; staff said further detail on funding pathways would be provided in future budget deliberations.

The council did not adopt a final appropriation that night; the presentation and the public testimony established the master plan as a high priority for subsequent budgeting and capital planning.