An undated photo of Springfield City Hall.
Rebecca Hansen-White / KLCC
Springfield is asking voters to increase the city’s fire levy to provide more dedicated resources for fire services.
Springfield leaders have been working for the last year to stabilize the city’s budget after years of cuts. Over the summer the city council was able to balance this year’s shortfall, but decided to pursue longer term solutions including dedicated fire funding.
Eugene Springfield Fire Chief Mike Caven says the levy was originally created to cover the cost of a fifth fire company. As costs have increased over the years, the city filled the gap with general fund dollars.
“This levy renewal seeks to restore the full cost of operating that fire station to the levy,” Caven said. “It’s going from 38 cents per a thousand to 53 cents per a thousand.”
He said the 15 cent increase is designed to preserve fire services.
While Springfield and Eugene have combined some of the two cities’ firefighting operations, funding is still separate. Caven said all the funds collected in the levy will only pay for Springfield fire personnel.
If the levy fails, Caven says Springfield could lose an entire fire company which would increase response times.
Ballots are due Nov. 4.
Rebecca Hansen-White is a reporter with KLCC. This story comes to you from the Northwest News Network, a collaboration between public media organizations in Oregon and Washington.
It is part of OPB’s broader effort to ensure that everyone in our region has access to quality journalism that informs, entertains and enriches their lives. To learn more, visit our journalism partnerships page.
