Voters in Osage Beach Fire Protection District reject property tax increase

OSAGE BEACH, Mo. (KMIZ)

Voters in Camden and Miller counties voted against a 30-cent increase for every $100 of value. That money would have funded new equipment and a new location for the fire department to reduce response times.

The new location of the fire department would have been a mile and a half away from the current building. The current response time is an average of eight minutes and 55 seconds. Officials said the new fire station would have reduced response times to a average of five minutes and 30 seconds.

Osage Beach Fire Chief Brian Berardi says, "The current location adds travel time of two minutes and 40 seconds if we are traveling east on parkway and a minute and five seconds if we are traveling west on the parkway."

Chief Berardi said that there will still be the same level of service but that could change over time.

The only reason service would decrease is if the population increases in the future.

For the proposal to be on the ballot again next year the chief says that the department will have to reevaluate its plan going forward.

The department will look at if it didn't provide enough information to the public or if the public is satisfied with the level of service that they are receiving at this time.

Chief Brian Berardi said although the property tax measure did not pass, there will not be an impact on the level of service Osage Beach will obtain.