Roselle fire tax finally approved on fourth try

Despite the economic recession, Roselle Fire Protection District voters approved higher property taxes Tuesday to help the district meet its approximate $540,000 financial obligation to the Roselle Fire Department.

With all precincts reporting in DuPage and Cook Counties, unofficial results show the measure was approved with 402 votes in favor and 380 opposing the tax hike. It was the district's fourth attempt to pass the measure.

Roselle's fire department provides services to residents of unincorporated areas because the fire district doesn't own equipment or buildings of its own.

To maintain this service, voters approved a measure that will be phased in over a four-year period. In both DuPage and Cook portions of the district, taxes paid to the district this year would double for a $300,000 house.

After the four-year phase-in, the total taxes owed to the fire district for that home in DuPage would be about $600, while they would end up at approximately $179 in Cook.