Coweta residents may get the chance to address growing public safety needs as early as November by voting on a bond issue for $15-20 million in equipment and facilities for the county fire department. A successful vote in the referendum would offset a potential millage increase needed to meet county fire response requirements.

Chief Dennis Hammond told commissioners June 17 the Coweta Fire Department has significant needs, including a new headquarters station, a new station near the Corinth Road/Bohannon Road area, two additional ladder trucks and additional equipment and an 800 megahertz trunking system for radio communications.

“We’ve talked about funding for a long time,” said County Administrator Theron Gay, noting that the original referendum in the 1970s capped the fire department at 2.5 mills.

Hammond and Gay referenced Coweta’s rapid grow in recent years and the projected continuation of that growth, saying that it is questionable whether funding sources the department has relied on for more than 30 years will be sufficient to meet future fire safety needs.

Meeting those needs through a referendum would offset the possible alternative of a millage increase of approximately .5 mills over 20 years.

Commissioners were receptive to the idea of a holding a referendum. They will discuss the issue further at the next meeting, including having the measure on the November ballot. The referendum could be held in March 2009 if the November date cannot be worked out.