Fire chief outlines $32M budget, 15 new hires and plans for Station 6

Chris Goodwin, fire chief, presented the Fire Department’s budget to the Edmond City Council workshop, saying the department projects about $32,000,000 in revenue for the coming fiscal year and is proposing major investments in personnel, equipment and station readiness. "Of course, our biggest category of our budget is our personnel services. It comes in at about 76% of our budget," Goodwin said, and added the department would add 15 positions to staff a new Fire Station 6.

Why it matters: Personnel and capital choices will shape response capacity and insurance ratings across Edmond. Goodwin said the quarter-cent fire public safety tax will contribute nearly $6,000,000 to next year’s revenues, alongside general fund transfers and miscellaneous income (interest, a fire protection agreement with Arcadia, and a cell-tower lease).

Goodwin broke the request into specific line items. He said the 15 new positions for Station 6 include three captains, three drivers and nine firefighters, plus one additional fire prevention officer and a civilian assistant quartermaster to help with procurement and fleet maintenance. For equipment, he listed about $1.2 million in materials and supplies for the year, including replacing 15 sets of bunker gear and roughly $68,000 for face-mask replacements. He also cited a roughly $152,000 need for computers for new vehicles.

On capital outlay, Goodwin said the department plans just over $2,000,000 in spending for furniture, fixtures and equipment tied to Station 6, and identified a $550,000 replacement of outdated station alerting systems across the department. He also named audiovisual upgrades (~$100,000) and about $306,000 for miscellaneous capital items such as defibrillators, training mannequins and thermal imaging cameras.

Goodwin emphasized performance goals tied to the budget: a turnout time target of 80 seconds or less for fire-suppression and special-operations responses, 90% of the time, and an engine arrival target within 320 seconds (80-second turnout plus a 240-second travel time) for a substantial portion of incidents. He reported current performance slightly above the 90% turnout target.

Looking beyond the coming year, Goodwin listed multi-year needs including replacement of 55 additional bunker-gear sets, nine fleet vehicles, relocation of Fire Station 3 (property already acquired), and renovation or addition at Fire Station 1 near UCO (a feasibility study recommended a $4.4 million renovation as less costly than rebuilding). Goodwin also noted the department’s rights under the AMR ambulance agreement to purchase ambulances at cost and said staff may buy one ambulance this year to provide additional transport capacity during surges.

What’s next: Goodwin said he would prepare an update on the Arcadia and Hiwassee service agreements and review fee structures. Council members asked clarifying questions; Goodwin said he reviews contract fees annually and that cooperative purchasing agreements help obtain better pricing on equipment.