Commissioners to vote on creating new fire districts

Property taxes could jump for thousands of homeowners in Mecklenburg County. 

Commissioners are set to vote on creating five new fire districts Tuesday night.  

If that happens, firefighters in Cornelius said they are going to have to scramble to find about $95,000.  Chief Jim Barbee said that is about 8 percent of their budget.

"We're going to have to sit down and look at the numbers and make some hard decisions," he said. 

Right now, Mecklenburg County gives money to Cornelius Lemley Fire Rescue and some other volunteer departments to pay for service in the town's unincorporated areas, those that are not within the town's limits but still in Mecklenburg County. 

County Commissioner Karen Bentley said the county has talked about putting an end to that for years. 

"It really is not a core function of our government, of county government," she said. 

Some county commissioners want to create fire tax districts in the unincorporated areas of five towns.  The proposed tax would mean property owners with a home worth $150,000 would pay $65 to $105 more a year. 

Leaders said Huntersville, Davidson, Mint Hill and Pineville should make enough money from the tax so that they do not notice much difference in funding.  However, because Cornelius's unincorporated areas are small and mostly vacant, the fire department will lose money.

Barbee said they cannot make cuts when it comes to taking care of their trucks, and they cannot spend less on fuel since gas prices continue to rise.  So, they may have to cut staff.

Barbee said that may mean a staff of three people during the day at their two departments instead of four, which could mean the difference between life and death at the scene of a fire. 

"There have been studies done that show how much more efficient and quickly things can be done with four people versus three people," he said.

Eyewitness News asked Bentley if an exception could be made for Cornelius.  She said she asked that question, too. 

"I was directed by staff that no, that's not a possibility.  We can't treat one municipality different than the rest." 

Bentley said commissioners will also vote on whether to hold a public hearing on the issue next month.