Citizens of 2nd and 9th Districts need to be informed of potential changes to local Fire/EMS Station

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The following letter is posted on behalf of Concerned Citizens of 2nd and 9th Districts...

Citizens of 2nd and 9th Districts need to be informed of potential changes to your local Fire/EMS Station.

In our previous letters, we informed you of the potential for a Co. 6 Fire\EMS station to be supported by a Fire and Rescue tax increase request.

We are pleased that Co. 6 Fire\EMS has published some of the information we have been discussing in our letters during the summer 2017. The latest issue of "THE FIREHOUSE CHATTER" contains two articles that address the new Co. 6 Fire\EMS station and a Fire and Rescue Tax increase. These articles, while informative do raise some additional concerns. If you did not receive "The Firehouse Chatter" in the mail, you can review it at the 2nd District Website.

According to the articles the new Co. 6 Fire\EMS station would provide better response times and modern equipment. What is not clear is how a new building will improve response times given it is essentially at the same location. The response time has not been associated to the fire station itself, it has been associated with available volunteers as indicated in the newsletter. Spending multi-million dollars does not seem to be the right approach to improve response times. Even more worrisome is their willingness to obtain a second revolving loan with the County, in addition to seeking a Maryland State loan plus a private loan. Three additional loans are concerning especially since they have indicated a funding shortfall. Yet, they still entered into a contract with Maginnis +del Ninno Architects for carrying the plan forward without knowing if the 2nd/9th district residents were supportive of a new Fire/EMS station.

The Fire and Rescue tax hikes and funding for this estimated multi-million dollar station is a significant issue. To date we do not know the actual estimated cost but it is feasible to expect somewhere between $8 and $10 million dollars, possibly more.

Using the "Firehouse Chatter" estimates, the combined Fire and Rescue tax increase would be 32% (2nd district) and 37% (9th district) to you the taxpayer. You can easily use your most recent property tax bill, August 2017, from the county to see what increase in the dollar amount affects you. To get an idea of the impact, add your current Fire and Rescue tax amounts together and multiple by 1.32 (2nd district) and 1.37 (9th district) and that will provide you with what you will need to pay for the Fiscal Year 2019 tax year. It should be noted that that this increase will be yearly payments for as long as you own your property. Those percentages may not seem very large but if you are on a fixed income, it could have impacts to your financial situation. When was the last time your employer gave you a 30+% increase in your wages?

We are not attempting to sway your financial decision to support or not support this tax increase. We are just trying to make it clear of the impact to you, the taxpayer. They are requesting a tax increase for new multi-million dollar Fire/EMS station without providing the facts on how it will improve services to the community.

If concerned or have any questions, please contact the Concerned Citizens of 2nd and 9th Districts at concerncitizens2and9district@gmail.com or follow us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/Concernedcitizensof2ndand9thdistrict-St-Marys-County-1572519312789805/
 

black dog

Free America
To date we do not know the actual estimated cost but it is feasible to expect somewhere between $8 and $10 million dollars, possibly more.


Sounds familiar ,,,. Oh yeah. We will know what's in it after we vote it in....


Nancy is that you??????
 
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