From left, Pierceton Town Council members, Mandy Espinoza, Matt Brubaker and Tom Barker are seen discussing the idea of establishing a fire territory with two townships. InkFreeNews photo by Dan Spalding.

By Dan Spalding
InkFreeNews

PIERCETON — No one in Pierceton spoke in favor of creating a fire territory with two townships during a meeting Monday, Jan. 17, at the Pierceton Community Building.

The special meeting was the third in recent weeks to look at whether the town wants to create a fire territory with Washington and Monroe townships.

Town Council President Mandy Espinoza asked for comments from a crowd of about 20 people on the plan.

What council heard was a mix of questions on the impact and what changes might come as a result of establishing a territory. There were also a handful of comments about the tax hike that would come with any of the three financial plans outlined in previous meetings.

Those at the meeting, which included numerous firefighters, did not speak in strong support of creating the territory.

Maybe the strongest sign of support for creating a territory was among those on town council.

Espinoza said he would be able and willing to support the tax hike in exchange for improved fire protection.

On the other hand, Espinoza said he has to represent the town’s best interests.

He said one business representative conveyed to the town that they like the idea of a fire territory, but worry over the tax impact.

A woman at the meeting suggested it’s a bad time for taxes to go up because of inflation.

The meeting was also a chance to clarify a few issues brought up by the public.

• Establishing a territory would lead to the hiring of three full-time firefighters who would work with the existing volunteer firefighting staff.
• A fire territory board made up of representatives of all involved taxing units would oversee the territory budget.
• Offcials said there are no plans to construct a new fire station.
• Officials also pointed out that a fire territory – or any other taxing unit in Indiana – is limited in how much they can raise property taxes.

The three plans for the territory consider included anticipated tax rate hike info for three different sized budgets over three years. In most of the scenarios, property owners would see their taxes rise between roughly 13-18% over the first three years.

Espinoza said they believe the two townships were waiting to hear if the town would support starting the process of establishing a territory.

Officials must complete the process by April 1 if they want to establish a territory next year.

The council did not take a vote on the proposal Monday. Officials also did not explain how they intend to inform the townships of their decision.

The lack of strong support for a territory comes despite the volunteer fire department’s acknowledgment that they were unable to staff nearly 35% of the fire and medical calls in 2021.

Town Council Vice President Matt Brubaker, who is assistant fire chief, said he’s aware of three accidents and two house fires the fire department was unable to respond to.

He expressed concern about the importance of quickly responding to a medical emergency where a life hangs in the balance.

“If you’re loved one is willing to wait 20, 30 minutes for an ambulance to get there, you won’t need (this) going forward,”  Brubaker said. 

Pierceton, like many volunteer units, is finding it hard to recruit volunteers, in part, because few companies will allow their workers to leave to respond to emergencies.

A view of the crowd Monday, Jan. 17, during a discussion of whether to establish a fire territory. InkFreeNews photo by Dan Spalding.