Voters reject tax hike for Winfield fire district

Winfield Fire Protection District voters have rejected a property tax increase that would have made it possible for the district to staff a vacant firehouse.

With all 26 precincts reporting, about 60 percent of the voters opposed the tax-hike request Tuesday while nearly 40 percent supported it, unofficial vote totals show. A total of 5,616 ballots were counted.

Fire protection district officials wanted to staff the firehouse along Winfield Road, just north of Roosevelt Road, to improve response times south of the train tracks that divide its coverage area.

While Winfield has two firehouses, only the station on the north side of the tracks is staffed.

The district includes nearly all of Winfield, as well as unincorporated areas near West Chicago, Wheaton, Carol Stream and Warrenville.

Voters were asked to approve the property tax increase so the district could raise roughly $650,000 to hire and train six full-time firefighters. The new employees would have made it possible for the district to have a two-person paramedics unit assigned to the fire station.

If the tax increase had been approved, the owner of a $300,000 house would have paid about $122 more in annual property taxes to the district.

The district has asked for additional money for staffing several times, most recently in February 2008, but voters have rejected each request.