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Committee directs staff to begin fire‑station planning and approves $1 million allocation for site infrastructure work
Summary
After lengthy debate over priorities for a $4 million capital borrowing, the committee directed staff to start fire‑station site work and approved a motion to allocate $1,000,000 toward the project and begin site investigations; members also discussed earmarking $3 million for construction and seeking grants/donations for the balance.
The committee spent an extended portion of its Sept. 17 meeting debating how to allocate an authorized $4 million in capital borrowing and how to sequence projects. Options discussed included using most of the funds for a new fire station, dedicating money to street and utility work (Sunset Avenue projects), or splitting funds across needs.
One member proposed earmarking $3,000,000 toward the fire station and keeping $1,000,000 for infrastructure to reach the site; proponents said that split would allow design work and put the city in position to seek grants or donations to close remaining funding gaps. Some members noted prior referendums to fund a fire station had failed, and they debated whether the council should proceed without a referendum; other members said current financial capacity and council authority made a direct decision appropriate.
A motion was made and seconded to allocate $1,000,000 to the fire station effort and to begin site investigation and engineering. The committee recorded an affirmative roll‑call majority and directed staff to begin work on site selection and preliminary engineering while pausing other engineering tasks until the site is confirmed where appropriate. Several members signaled support for beginning design and competitive bidding once a site is selected; staff warned the project would not be finished in 2025 and estimated a timeline into 2026 or later.
The committee’s direction is not a final construction authorization; staff said a future council action will be needed to finalize any site purchase, to adopt detailed plans, and to authorize full construction funding.
