May 10, 1989

Fire station decision delayed

       After two hours of discussion, a decision on a proposed second fire station for White River Township was put off once again Tuesday night.  The Johnson County Board of Zoning Appeals voted to continue the issue until next month, much to the dismay of the vocal crowd that turned out to oppose the station.  In March, the White River Fire Department announced plans to buy a 33.3-acre farm west of the railroad tracks on Fairview Road for a new station to serve the northern part of the 17-square-mile fire district.  But the request was continued from both the March and April meetings of the BZA after strong opposition from neighborhood groups.  Although the area is zoned for single-family residential use, fire stations are allowable by special exceptions of the BZA.  Tuesday night’s decision was frustrating for many of the more than 90 people who attended the meeting to oppose the station. The group grumbled with disappointment after the board voted unanimously in favor of the continuance on a motion by member Steve Miller.  But chairperson Mark McCarty, expressing his displeasure with the standoff between the two sides, said the continuance would allow them more time to get together and work out a compromise.  Joe Van Valer, attorney for the fire department, told members of the board that the proposed location for the new station is crucial because most of the emergency calls come from north of Smith Valley Road.  The present station is on Runyon Road, just south of Smith Valley.  Remonstrators, however, said the proposed location is not a good one because of its proximity to schools, the narrowness of Fairview Road, and the detrimental effects they say it would have on nearby property.  Mike Kias, attorney for the remonstrators, argued that the only reason the board could grant the special exception would be if the proposed location is the only possible site.  That, he said, has not been proven. “In light of the growth trends,” he said, “why can’t the station move to the west?”  Kias said a location closer to Morgantown and Fairview roads would be cheaper and would allow for construction of a state-of-the-art facility that would serve the needs of future growth in the district.  The bottom line, he said, is that the proposed site is smack in the middle of an already developed area.  Van Valer countered that the new station is a necessary benefit to the people in the area.  “This is not a landfill project,” he said. “What this is, is a fire department designed to protect the people of the district it serves.”  He was backed up by fire chief Howard Bennis, who said emergency response time to areas along County Line Road and State Road 135 – where more than half of the calls originate – is about seven minutes in good weather.  In making his motion, Miller acknowledged that there will probably be opposition wherever the station is finally located.  But he expressed hope that the two sides could work out a solution.  The fire district was established in 1986.  The department would ultimately like to eliminate the Runyon Road station and have three other stations throughout the district.  The purchase of the Fairview Road property, at a price tag of $240,000, is contingent on the department securing the special exception to the zoning classification.  (Reprinted with permission from the Daily Journal)

 
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