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Fox River & Countryside fire district seeks money for quality

Better staffing, service is aim of tax request

Fox River & Countryside Fire/Rescue officials believe a staggered property tax increase will be more palatable this April than dropping one big tax bill in the mail.

But whether voters buy into paying more may be about approving what the officials have done with the district in four years as it is about the money.

It wasn't long ago fire district trustees presented a series of tax increase questions to voters with warnings that the district would soon be insolvent. Despite the message, voters rejected the increases, sparking a messy divorce from St. Charles, which had provided the fire and emergency medical staffing for the district to that point.

Unable to swallow cost of service increases the city wanted to place on the district, trustees contracted with a private company for staffing. The fire district is a co-employer of that staff.

Ever since, trustees have moved slowly to attract better-quality staff members, improve response times with additional stations, and upgrade equipment. Aside from the tax levy increases, that hasn't meant asking for big chunks of new dollars. Until now.

The proposed increase in the referendum this April would see the owner of a $100,000 home pay the district $48 more through the annual property tax bills. The owner of that same home now pays the district $96.13 a year for fire and emergency medical services. The proposed $48 increase is spread over five years to increase that tax bill as follows:

Now: $96.13

2015: $104.24

2016: $113.04

2017: $122.58

2018: $132.92

2019: $144.13

“In past referendums you've seen attempts to make this big jump, and they fail,” Fire Chief Greg Benson said. “With this one, we are recognizing the impact on people and saying let's increment this in over a period of five years and allow people to factor it into their budgets.”

The new money will fund pay raises for staffing and equipment purchases and move the district closer to opening a third firehouse at Crane and Bolcum roads where new residential development is fueling a population increase. The district already owns the land for that firehouse.

Benson said it's important for district residents to understand that the money will improve all facets of the district's service delivery.

That begins with the actual emergency crews where the starting salary is $34,000. U.S. Department of Labor stats show the national median wage for a firefighter is $45,600. And, according to Salary.com, the average wage for a firefighter in the Chicago metro area is $52,200. Those numbers make it hard for the district to attract and retain the highest-quality personnel, Benson said.

“We've worked very hard to keep our tax rate down,” he said. “When you compare our rate to other area fire districts we're tied for the second lowest tax rate (out of 24 districts). If this increase passes, in five years we'll still be the fourth lowest tax rate.”

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