Lee County FY 2018 budget still on hold

LEESBURG — What was expected to be a final budget approval meeting Tuesday night, resulted in another delay as Lee County commissioners continued to disagree on key allocations for Fiscal Year 2018, which starts Saturday.

On Monday, Dennis Roland, chair of the Board of Commissioners, got it right when he predicted the budget might not be approved.

The proposed allocations for a new fire/EMS station and the purchase of a new firetruck continue to be the biggest bones of contention, with three board members in favor of opening the new station and two opposed to it. Commissioner Billy Mathis, a proponent of the station whose vote would have broken a tie, was unable to attend Tuesday night’s commission meeting.

Public Safety Director Wesley Wells said he was disappointed that the budget did not pass but happy to get permission to purchase a new firetruck.

After following a directive from board members at a recent work session, Wells began searching for a firetruck. Within an hour of the commissioners’ meeting Tuesday, two options became available.

“Mr. Wells just got the numbers at 5:15 today,” County Co-Manager Mike Sistrunk said.

Commissioners listened as Wells presented the information.

“At our last meeting you gave me the go-ahead to look for a firetruck. I scoured all across the nation,” Wells said.

Wells said he found two trucks that would be available to order within the next 30 days. The truck Wells recommended is nearly identical to the firetrucks currently in operation in the county.

Wells said the cost for that truck is $293,114. A second truck priced at $290,391 is not the same as those currently in use.

Commissioner Luke Singletary said he does not support opening a new EMS/Fire station at this time or purchasing a new firetruck for that station. If and when a new firetruck is needed, he said, the option to buy one just like those already in use by the county is a “no-brainer.”

Commissioner Rick Muggridge wanted to know how much it would cost for equipment once a truck arrived.

Wells said the equipment needed for either truck will cost another $60,000.

“That’s $350,000 out the door for a fully equipped truck,” Muggridge said.

“Yes,” Wells responded.

Wells said he preferred the truck that has the same style and offers the same features as those already in use by Lee County.

According to Wells, it will take about 240 days from the time the truck is ordered until it can be delivered.

The four commissioners voted unanimously to buy a new truck.

As the evening progressed, however, Lee County commissioners were not able to reach an agreement on other specifics related to the proposed fire station.

As soon as Commissioner Bill Williams made the motion to adopt the budget, Commissioner Muggridge suggested restructuring a few of the allocations.

Muggridge suggested funds earmarked for staffing the new EMS/Fire station be redesignated since there would be such a long waiting period for a firetruck to arrive.

“I’m not saying the station isn’t coming, but I think we can buy a truck later,” Muggridge said.

After the meeting ended, with no vote to pass the budget, Muggridge expanded on his thoughts about the new fire station and the need to purchase a new truck.

“I say it is OK if they want to open the fire station immediately, but I think it is a mistake at that location where they had only 37 calls all of last year,” he said. “That money could be better spent.”

Muggridge said he would like to see an additional $100,000 earmarked to upgrade the county’s IT concerns. He also wanted to see funds made available to pay off accrued comp time for county employees.

At a previous meeting, commissioners said they are considering a new human resource plan that would not allow county employees to accrue more than 40 hours of comp time.

Williams said he was “a bit disappointed that the budget didn’t pass.”

“We worked hard on it,” he said. “There are many good things within the budget.”

In spite of Tuesday night’s indecision, Williams said he was confident the budget would pass with few or no changes when commissioners meet again on July 11.

In the meantime, Lee County will keep operating off its FY 2017 budget, Williams said.