Wylie fire chief lays out EMS gains, staffing pressures and facility options as bond committee approaches

In Work Session 2 Chief Black presented a detailed Fire Department overview covering 2025 highlights, EMS performance, deployment, mutual aid, staffing and facility needs.

Chief Black said the department recorded multiple lifesave events since taking EMS in-house and reported 4,981 EMS calls and 3,586 transports in 2025; six cardiac-arrest patients survived that year. He noted EMS billing has begun to produce revenue near staff expectations and that the department’s dispatch/communications work is expanding with NextGen 9-1-1 and new console equipment planned.

Staff outlined staffing levels (25 personnel on duty each day, 28 assigned with three relief positions), fleet replacement plans (annual ambulance procurement; quin t delivery anticipated in 2029) and a five-to-ten-year apparatus replacement schedule. Chief Black described mutual-aid roles and existing agreements with nearby cities and said the department is evaluating an Emergency Service District (ESD) agreement with Collin County that could increase revenues.

The chief presented three facility strategies for bond consideration: (1) a new consolidated public-safety complex housing fire station, admin, EOC/dispatch, fleet and training; (2) a phased approach building a new fire station and repurposing Station 2 as training/logistics; or (3) renovate existing stations and expand training and fleet support. He provided rough cost frameworks (using a high-end $1,000 per square foot estimate) and asked council to provide prioritized, phased options so the bond committee could prepare recommendations.

Councilmembers asked for a menu of options with estimated costs, phasing and expected impacts on other city facilities (including the Public Safety Building). Mayor Porter and others requested further breakdowns for a bond committee to review.