Fernley's population has more than doubled since 2000, closing in on 20,000 residents. While most see the growth as a good thing, the North Lyon County Fire Protection District has not been able to keep up with the demand for service. Chief Scott Huntley says their budget and staff is built for a town of about 3,000 residents.
"We feel it is our duties to make sure this community is protected as much as we can," Huntley said.
Fernley is the largest city is Lyon County, but it has the lowest tax rate of the four fire districts in the county, receiving half Central Lyon's rate. Huntley says his station operates on about $1.5 million per year, which is also about half of what he says is needed. North Lyon Fire does have about nine volunteer firefighters, and it relies on grant money to purchase essentials like hose. Hand-me-down equipment is also used, including two fire engines that were donated by Las Vegas.
"They're almost 20 years old and there's departments out there, when these reach 10 years old, out the door they go," Huntley said.
The national standard says a structure fire requires 15 firefighters. Fernley only has four per shift. In 2008, call volume was 2,170. Last year, it was more than 500 higher, up to 2,708 emergency calls. Huntley says it is not uncommon to have more than one emergency at one time.
"I don't care if you're the best staffed fire department or the best staffed ambulance service in the nation," Huntley said. "That's an impact to you and it's difficult to meet those challenges."
Fernley has 12 full-time firefighters, and no captains or battalion chiefs. Elko has a similar population, but it has 29 firefighters. The fire district is already behind, and Huntley says population growth could put even more pressure on them. City leaders say Fernley could have nearly 30,000 residents in the next decade.
"We have four subdivisions that have anywhere from four to nine or ten homes being built, right now," Mayor Roy Edgington, City of Fernley said. "That means we have four people competing for our market."
The city's general fund is about $7 million, and population growth will likely mean more money from property taxes. Huntley says that sounds good, in theory, but he fears the revenue will not be enough because of lower assessed values.
"We want to see development," Huntley said. "We're excited about that and we definitely believe it will help us, but we want to make sure those people's investments are protected, too."
The North Lyon County Fire Protection District is a separate from the City of Fernley, but they both get their revenue from property tax. The city also gets some funding from fees from permits, building and business licenses. Other Nevada cities also receive a C-Tax, state sales tax that is distributed throughout the state. Fernley only gets about $144,000 per year, while other cities with a similar population get anywhere from $6 million and $14 million.
"We don't have a Class One fire department or two police cars in a squad car," Edgington said. "We just don't have those resources and that's one of the things you give up when you live in rural Nevada."
That is why Edgington is optimistic about population growth.Â
"You celebrate your victories, and we've got some victories," Edgington said. "We're going to see growth. We're going to see impacts. We're going to see a larger revenue as time goes by."
