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City updates Prop. 478 rollout: stations, higher costs and funding offsets under review
Summary
Fire and police leaders updated the council on Prop. 478‑funded projects, saying earlier station designs, post‑COVID program changes and site constraints raised costs; staff identified roughly $27.8M of additional capacity through conservative sales‑tax, impact fees, debt management and phasing.
Fire and police chiefs told the Prescott City Council on May 28 that the public‑safety tax program (Prop. 478) remains on track but that refined design and post‑COVID standards have increased capital estimates and changed some delivery assumptions.
Fire Chief Dura said the initiative still aims to deliver new and remodeled fire stations, site upgrades and a property and evidence facility, and affirmed a focus on projects that serve the public first. He said that changes in station programming and health/safety standards since earlier estimates increased projected square footage and costs; the constrained lot at Station 72 on Sixth Street required a rebuild rather than a remodel in order to achieve code, decontamination and longevity goals.
Chief Dura said the first tranche of new stations (including a station 76 at Sundog Lakes/Prescott Lakes Parkway and a relocated element for Station 73) is targeted to open in summer 2028, and that the department has standardized safety features such as drive‑through bays. Police Chief Amy Bonnie described combining a police substation with the property/evidence facility to centralize operations and plan for 30 years of growth; the combined property/evidence design is currently about 30% complete.
Finance director Lars Johnson presented a funding reconciliation: the original capital estimate of about $110.6 million has grown to $137.2 million (a variance of ~$26.7M). Staff identified additional funding capacity—conservative sales‑tax growth assumptions, revised impact‑fee projections, lower borrowing needs from phased delivery and delayed operational hires—that together provide roughly $27.8M of capacity to cover increased costs without changing the program’s core promises.
Council members pressed staff on revenue assumptions (sales tax trends and development timing), timing for the final station and whether portions of the tax increment could be retired early once capital needs are satisfied. Staff said assumptions are conservative and will be monitored quarterly and that retiring the 0.2% increment earlier remains a possibility if projections hold.
No formal action was taken; staff will continue value‑engineering and provide reconciled figures for council review as the program moves toward firm contractor pricing and final design.
