Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Public Safety topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Fire chief details new station timeline, debt service and response-time gains
Summary
Fire Chief Shoger said the new fire station will carry $1.4 million in annual debt service for 25 years, expects occupancy by end of August with a public open house Sept. 21, and described duty-crew staffing models that yield roughly five-minute faster response times per call.
Fire Chief Shoger gave an overview of the department’s staffing model, recent grants and the new fire station schedule, and discussed operational impacts and costs.
"The debt service for that new station will be $1,400,000 for the next 25 years," Chief Shoger said, describing the station as a long-term investment to support growing call volumes and improved staff safety. He outlined that the department is a combination of 29 paid on-call firefighters and three full-time employees, and that last year the department responded to 468 calls for service with pace to exceed that in 2026.
Shoger said the city plans a ribbon-cutting on Aug. 10 and a public open house Sept. 21, with staff expecting to occupy the building by the end of August. Council members thanked the chief and noted that duty-crew shifts (staffed station crews) remove mobilization delay and generally reduce response times by about five minutes on average, an operational improvement the chief described as anecdotal but consistent with duty-crew experience.
The chief also noted a small grant from CenterPoint Energy ($2,500) used to purchase rope-rescue equipment and highlighted the ongoing human and institutional impacts of the department’s work at a somber moment marking the one-year anniversary of a firefighter’s death from cancer.
