By Robert Kelly
St. Louis Post-Dispatch (Missouri)
Copyright 2006 St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Inc.
All Rights Reserved
ANTONIA, Mo. — Officials of the Antonia Fire Protection District are reassessing their needs and their options for future funding after voters narrowly defeated two tax-increase proposals on Tuesday.
“The need is still there, and we need to focus on fire-safety concerns,” Antonia fire Chief John Newsome said Thursday.
“We need to take a closer look at the election results and decide what should be done next,” he said.
In complete but unofficial returns from Tuesday, Antonia Fire District voters rejected a tax increase that would have been used to hire three more paid firefighters and buy a new pumper truck. The vote to reject the proposed increase of 45 cents for each $100 of assessed value was 2,668 to 2,614.
Voters also turned down another proposed increase of 5 cents for each $100 of assessed value to boost the district’s underfunded pension program. That rejection vote was 2,825 to 2,430.
Newsome said he saw some hope in the fact that the votes were close. But he said he was unsure whether both propositions could be resubmitted to voters soon because both were defeated.
He said district officials would look at ways to save money. Even so, he said that any significant cuts could affect service to residents of the fire district.
“This year, we’ve tightened our belt more than we ever had before,” Newsome said.
The Antonia district has 15 paid firefighters and 16 volunteers. The district, in fast-growing north-central Jefferson County, covers 36 square miles, including Antonia, Barnhart and parts of House Springs, Imperial, Otto and the Seckman Valley.
Newsome has said that his firefighters responded to 965 calls for service last year and probably would answer more than 1,000 calls this year.
He contended that more firefighters and equipment were needed to improve safety and shorten response times.
He also said a new pumper truck would be needed soon to replace a 1990 model.
In addition, the district must find ways to deal with rising fuel costs and health-care costs for its employees, Newsome said.
Officials ultimately might need to ask voters again for a tax increase, he said.