People who own property in Perry may have to pay a fee for more firefighters.
The city will present its 2015 budget to the public tonight at 5:00 p.m. at Perry City Hall.
City Manager Lee Gilmour says he will recommend that council ask property owners to pay about $9.50 a month, to fund adding an additional fire crew. The city needs to hire 21 firefighters to bring it to full staff, according Gilmour.
The fee would be added by establishing an Emergency Services District.
Currently, the city has three crews, with three firefighters on each one. He says they need four crews, with four firefighters on each.
The city built a third fire station a year ago on Houston Lake Road. They moved firefighters from the main fire station, to staff the new one.
The Insurance Service Office (ISO) wants the city to have four full-time fire crews to staff three stations. Lee said hiring the firefighters will enable them to keep the cost of insurance for property owners the same. If they don't hire more fire fighters, the cost of insurance could go up.
Gilmour says $9.50 per property, per month will be better for most homeowners, than increasing the millage rate. He said council would have to raise the millage rate by 3 mills to cover the cost of hiring, if they chose not to levy the fee.
