NEWS

City officials make case for safety levy

Matthew Kent
Reporter

CHILLICOTHE – City leaders officially launched their effort Monday to get supporters of a safety forces levy to the polls May 5.

The backdrop for the campaign’s public launch was the shuttered fire station on East Main Street, which was closed shortly after a combined income tax levy for street maintenance and safety forces was rejected by voters in November.

There, officials encouraged voters to support a proposed 0.2 percentage point income tax hike in May that would bring in about $1.4 million if approved, which would allow the city to reopen the East Main Street and University Drive fire stations and create a combined dispatch center.

In addition, officials say the money collected would allow them to add five to seven jobs between the police and fire departments.

Ryan Wade, president of the International Firefighters Local 300 union, said passage would decrease overall response time to calls by allowing the department to operate a third truck for medic runs.

The safety forces levy will be one of two levies on the ballot facing voters in May. The city also is seeking a second proposed 0.2 percentage point income tax hike for street and alley improvements over a 10-year period.

The city’s income tax rate, which stands at 1.6 percent, hasn’t been raised since 1992. Someone earning a salary of $30,000 per year currently pays $480 a year in city taxes, city Auditor Luke Feeney said.

If the income tax rate was raised 0.2 percentage point, a person earning $30,000 can expect to pay $60 more a year, whereas that figure would be doubled if both issues passed.

Wade said he is confident the safety forces levy will pass, especially because the police and fire departments are joining forces to get out the information to the public.

“Both departments have a need, and we probably have better luck pulling our resources together,” Wade said.

Chillicothe City Councilman Dave Tatman said he hopes the levy will pass, and he stressed that the biggest benefit for both departments will be the increase in manpower. He said he was not concerned about the potential for low voter turnout, especially as the city has no contested council races in the upcoming primary election.

That means the city has to work to mobilize supporters to get to the polls.

“People gotta realize we need safety services,” Tatman said. “I just hope that everybody sees the need.”

Wade, who said his department’s staffing levels are where they were in 1961, noted that officials have seen a sharp rise in emergency calls to the tune of 5,600 last year. Meanwhile, fire Chief Jeff Creed stressed the safety levy “is about the safety of our community” and said officials are trying to look ahead to the future of the city by increasing staffing levels.

If the levy passes, the proposed income tax increase could free up two police officers and three firefighters to respond to calls. The combined dispatch center would likely be created three to six months after money starts being collected in January, Creed said.

More work is ahead in promoting the levy, Creed said, with different civic organizations and churches in the coming weeks. In addition, information will be available during a March 27 fish fry on Second Street and an upcoming community day.

For more information on the levy, visit www.saferchillicothe.org.