T-R PHOTO BY ROBERT MAHARRY State Center Fire/EMS Chief Brad Pfantz addresses the room during a public meeting on a proposed $1.5 million bond issue for a new station on the east edge of town. Voters will decide the matter on Nov. 7.

STATE CENTER — In preparation for a vote next month, State Center Fire/EMS Chief Brad Pfantz led an informal meeting held at city hall Thursday night and presented information on his department’s proposed $1.5 million bond to build a new station on the east edge of town.

The meeting was relatively lightly attended, with about 15 people in the crowd between firefighters, citizens, media members, Heidi Kuhl of Northland Securities, and representatives from the Studio Melee architecture firm and Greiner Construction, the company has been hired to serve as the construction manager. The vote, which will be held on Nov. 7, requires a 60 percent supermajority to pass, and it was estimated that the fire and EMS departments could move in within eight to nine months after the election if all goes according to schedule.

Pfantz opened with a brief explanation of the process behind the project and his hope for the two public meetings, with the other planned for Oct. 26.

“We would appreciate a yes vote from everybody. We understand we’re not gonna get 100 percent. Personally, I will respect a no vote if it’s an informed vote,” he said. “We want people to understand what we’re doing, the end goal, and if you don’t agree with it, that’s OK. We want everybody to understand and be informed on all the details and aspects of the project.”

The proposed new station, which would be located adjacent to the homeschool cooperative building on old Highway 30, would nearly triple the square footage compared to the current downtown facility that has served the city since 1978. Before that, the station was housed in what is now city hall.

As Pfantz explained, the role of fire departments has greatly expanded over time, and they now respond to everything from vehicle accidents to hazardous material incidents to grain bin rescues to “smells and bells,” in his words. A few years back, they even got a call about a mule stuck in a hole.

The primary area the entirely volunteer department of 23 members (including six EMTs and one paramedic) covers has also grown to about 84 square miles for fire and 125 for EMS — State Center Fire/EMS provides the only transport service in Marshall County other than UnityPoint. In addition, they provide automatic aid to Clemons and mutual aid to many neighboring departments including Albion, Liscomb, Rhodes, Melbourne and more. According to Pfantz, the department covers about a quarter of Marshall County’s land area when including Clemons.

State Center has recently averaged about 240 calls per year, or a call every day and a half, and Pfantz predicted the number would only continue to increase in the future.

After sharing some basic background information and thanking the community for its ongoing support, he made his case for why State Center needs a new station. Currently, the department’s equipment is stored in six different buildings, and the fire station itself is only about 3,700 square feet with limited space for firefighters to do something as simple as get dressed.

“It’s just not an ideal situation,” Pfantz said. “I’ll admit, the station looks rather large when everything’s out of it. But when we have trucks jam packed in, it is very, very tight — apparatuses parked bumper to bumper, very little room to get in between the trucks, and we have the challenge of not being able to fully open any of the apparatus doors to get in and out.”

He then explained some of the rearranging they have to do before they can even go out on a call and how it can delay response times. The ultimate goal, according to Pfantz, is to bring all operations “under one roof” and increase efficiency in a building that could last the city at least 50 years with a six-door bay while increasing administrative space and training areas.

“It’s gonna meet our current needs but also allow for growth,” he said. “We’ve designed the bays and the space to not have to shuffle trucks like we do now.”

About a half hour into the meeting, the representatives from Greiner and Studio Melee took over and shared details on the designs for the proposed building. Noting that they have donated their time before construction, Josh Miltenberger of Greiner Construction said it was a project he strongly believed in and shared his own experience with his grandmother being saved by a volunteer EMS department when he was 12 years old.

Kuhl, a native of Marshall County, broke down the tax impact of the bond, which would be paid back over 20 years, if it were to pass, noting that it would amount to $2.76 per $1,000 of valuation. For a residential property valued at $100,000, the annual tax increase would be $150.86, and a $200,000 commercial property would see a spike of $350.51 — according to Kuhl, the figures were conservatively estimated with a five percent interest rate on the bonds.

Pfantz added later in the meeting that if bids came in higher than expected for any reason, the department would be responsible for all costs beyond the allotted $1.5 million.

Former city councilman Dick Postel, who also previously served on the fire department, had several questions throughout the night on everything from the space at the current facility to how much Greiner was receiving for its services to the interest rates on bonds to why the Fire/EMS department didn’t simply find the money within the city’s current budget to pay for the project. He and Kuhl discussed the recent jump in assessed valuations and how they could affect the tax impact of the bond, and Postel asked Pfantz if there were any grants available.

“Not for stations,” Pfantz responded. “They are very, very hard. (There are some for) transfer equipment and trucks, (but) they’re even difficult.”

Postel argued that a proposal for a mezzanine area with a second weight room upstairs was “a waste of space” and wondered if it would be open to the public.

“They’re paying for it,” he said.

Pfantz then asked if the public would get to come into the police station whenever they wanted or use the city’s public works equipment at will. Another attendee asked if it would be less expensive to build up or out in the future, and the contractors said it depended on the space available.

Chuck Carpenter of KDAO Radio wondered if moving the station off of Main Street would increase safety, and Pfantz and Police Chief Jon Thomas, who was also in attendance, both said they believed it would.

“I absolutely agree, from a safety standpoint, putting them on the east side of town will mitigate a ton of traffic,” Thomas said. “The backing in and hoping the guy at the grocery store doesn’t back up into your fire truck because he’s on his phone because they forgot the macaroni… People don’t pay attention to driving, and being across from the grocery store, you’re even more distracted because you’re trying to figure out the seven things you forgot.”

Pfantz also expressed hope that another business would open in the space once Fire/EMS moved out of it. Postel asked why other sites weren’t considered and worried that it could create safety issues being near the homeschool cooperative.

An exchange became Postel and Assistant Fire Chief Rick Wilkening became heated when Postel suggested that the department should use its fundraising money to build a garage at a later time and free up more space, citing the rare use of the Rob Roy and indicating the place where it is stored could be used more effectively.

“What you’re saying is we should fundraise for the whole dang thing. If we have to fundraise for just two dang vehicles, why can’t we fundraise for the whole dang thing?” Wilkening asked. “You’ll see this department go bye-bye. Do you want that? Would you like that?”

Postel wondered if other bids had been sought and said he had heard of a 130’x100′ building being constructed for $250,000, but the representatives from Greiner and Studio Melee said that didn’t factor in all of the infrastructure that goes along with it.

“250 can get you a shell, but we need more than a shell,” Pfantz said.

Postel was also concerned that the two meetings might not provide enough time for voters to make an informed decision. After the room began to clear out Thursday night, Pfantz told the T-R he was grateful for the opportunity to get the message out and communicate directly with the public.

“I was a little disappointed in the turnout. You always want a lot of the public here so they can hear about it, but I think we made our case. We know now what questions to address in the next presentation,” Pfantz said. “You never know, going into this, what the people’s concerns are, and I think we addressed them, I hope, in a good manner, and we’ll see what happens in November… If anybody wants to learn more, come find me.”

The second and final meeting will be held at the same location on Oct. 26 at 6 p.m. In the meantime, with several field and combine fires in the western half of the county just this week, it’s a safe bet that volunteer departments like State Center’s will remain busy.

“We’re being requested for mutual aid more and more, and all departments are. It’s not just us going to other people. We call in help when we’re shorthanded, and every town is helping each other out. It is a countywide, statewide problem,” Pfantz said.

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Contact Robert Maharry at 641-753-6611 ext. 255 or

rmaharry@timesrepublican.com.