BOERNE — The Kendall County Commissioners Court on Tuesday rejected a plan to create an emergency services district that would operate a fire department — and levy taxes — in the county.
Commissioners voted no on a request to put the proposal on the county ballot in the May election, with some saying the proposal's organizers had failed to prove the new district was needed or to provide a workable plan for operating it.
Supporters of the plan say better fire protection is needed in and around Bergheim, an unincorporated community about 10 miles east of Boerne that has seen rapid population growth in recent years. The area is currently served by the Bergheim Volunteer Fire Department. The proposed emergency services district would have the authority to tax residents to pay for hiring full-time firefighters.
The Bergheim Volunteer Fire Department's board brought the petition to the commissioners court, with its leadership saying its volunteer staff can't keep up with the current volume of service calls in the area.
Opponents who spoke at Tuesday's commissioners court meeting said they were opposed to paying additional taxes and accused the plan's supporters of exaggerating the danger.
County voters have previously rejected creating an emergency services district in the area. In 2022, 54% of voters said no to Kendall County Proposition B, which would have established the district.
Emergency services districts are government entities that provide emergency medical and fire protection services. Created through Chapter 775 of the Texas Health and Safety Code, the districts can impose sales and property taxes to pay for their services.
Districts must file annual audit reports with the county they operate in, as well as an annual report with the Texas Department of Emergency Management.
Rapid growth in area
Cleve Hogarth, vice president of the Bergheim Volunteer Fire Department's board of directors, told the Express-News before Tuesday's meeting that the department's staff is too small to service the area's increased population.
The Bergheim Volunteer Fire Department covers 56 square miles of southeastern Kendall County. While it doesn't have an estimate for how many people an emergency service district would cover, Hogarth said the department is responsible for about 3,000 "rooftops."
The Bergheim department's board of directors, in a letter to residents in its service area, said calls for service doubled from 265 in 2020 to 530 in 2024. The department expects to surpass that number this year.
All of the department's personnel are volunteers, so the fire station is often unstaffed. There's "no assurance or consistent estimate of response time to any emergency call," the letter said.
About 60% of the calls are answered by the same four volunteers, Hogarth said. Two are retired and over 65 years old.
"It is no longer realistic to expect them to keep up,” the letter reads.
Outside of the Boerne Fire Department, there are no professional firefighting departments in Kendall County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a population of almost 51,000. Just under half of those live within Boerne's service area.
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Residents at odds
About 20 residents spoke on the proposal at Tuesday's meeting, and were about evenly divided on whether the county needs an emergency services district.
Those in favor of the district said it would help save lives and protect property.
Lucy Hudson, a volunteer firefighter in Bergheim, said an around-the-clock department would make response times faster.
"Delayed response puts lives and property at risk," she said.
Opponents of the plan accused organizers of stoking fear in the community and trying to create an unnecessary taxing entity.
Resident Maxie Zinsmeister said the members of the Bergheim Volunteer Fire Department were "fearmongering" over the threat a lack of volunteers posed. More taxes would be excessive, he said, and called on the petitioners to be more transparent on the financial impact an emergency services district would have on residents.
Commissioners criticize plan
Kendall County commissioners on Tuesday questioned the need for a county emergency services district, and were critical of the details of organizers' proposal. They also questioned the logic of putting the measure on the ballot again after voters defeated it three years ago.
Commissioner Andra Wisian, whose precinct covers much of Bergheim, pointed out that the Bergheim Volunteer Fire Department last year rejected a proposal from the county to pay for two full-time firefighters, with the fire department's leadership instead preferring to set up an emergency services district. The county allocated about $164,000 for the Bergheim department in its 2025 budget, along with a few thousand more in stipends.
Wisian's line of questioning led County Judge Shane Stolarczyk to point out what he said were legal flaws in the petition, which Stolarczyk said led him to withdraw his support for putting the measure on the ballot.
Commissioner Richard Chapman said more details were needed on the potential district's budget before commissioners could support it. He told the petitioners they needed to make their plan "work on paper" and to abstain from using "fear factor" to convince voters.
Stolarczyk said it's the county's responsibility to provide emergency services for its residents. He said the commissioners court could look at other options to address residents' concerns about emergency services.
Feb 11, 2025
Hill Country Reporter
Ricardo Delgado covers the Hill Country for the San Antonio Express-News. He can be reached at [email protected].
He previously worked for The University Star at Texas State University.
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