Chatham Commissioners Approve FY25 Budget, Create County-Operated Fire Department

Lina Portman6 days ago

0 2 minutes read

When the clock strikes midnight on July 1, Chatham County will be the fire service provider for the unincorporated area.

The Chatham County Board of Commissioners on Friday approved its fiscal 2025 budget and a purchase, lease and termination agreement with Southside Fire Protection Inc. that clears the way for the county to create its own fire department early this fiscal year.

“That means we will be dealing with fire issues at 12:01 a.m. (July 1), probably before any of us get up,” said Chester Ellis, chairman of the Chatham County Board of Commissioners. “Fire services will now be in the hands of the county.”

Southside Fire Protection Inc. was the fire service arm of Chatham Emergency Services. CES will continue to provide emergency medical services, such as ambulances, in its current service area after the Board of Commissioners approved an expansion of those services Friday.

The county-approved purchase agreement included the 13 fire stations, equipment and CES fees, at a cost of $5.3 million. Chatham County’s fiscal year 2025 budget includes 152 new fire department positions and a total of $18.5 million for the creation of the new fire department.

“I believe going forward this will prove to be a wise and profitable investment in the growth and future of Chatham County,” said District 6 Commissioner Aaron Whitely.

Chatham County's plan to create its own fire department was first unveiled in the county's proposed budget at a meeting in May. The transfer agreement with CES had originally been proposed for that meeting but was postponed to work out contractual details.

The county's overall budget is nearly $750 million, with $293 million coming from the general fund. The general fund includes five new positions in the district attorney's office for paralegals and administrative assistants.

The budget resolutions were not unanimous, however, with District 7 Commissioner Dean Kicklighter opposing the district's general fund and special services budgets because of the continued inclusion of a fire tax for unincorporated residents.

“They shouldn’t have fire charges from now on,” Kicklighter said.

District 4 Commissioner Pat Farrell and District 1 Commissioner Hellen Stone also opposed the budget for SSD, which serves the unincorporated area, because of what they called an unequal distribution of revenue from the local option sales tax, utility franchise fees and property taxes.

Those revenues are shared between the SSD and the areas of the county that have their own municipalities. Farrell proposed continuing the SSD budget until a way is found to bring a greater share of those revenues to the unincorporated area.

“I'm just looking for solutions to treat everyone in our county fairly, and I don't see them,” Farrell said.

Evan Lasseter is the city and county reporter for the Savannah Morning News. You can contact him at [email protected].

Lina Portman

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