Residents cite need for GV fire station

Lisa Snedeker

Wednesday, Feb. 17, 1999 | 11:10 a.m.

Residents in the southwest area of Henderson want to see the proposed fire station for Green Valley Ranch West built yesterday.

Resident Bill Moss told the Henderson City Council on Tuesday that he and his neighbors feel the need for the Green Valley West station on Horizon Ridge Drive and Pecos Road is more urgent than the need for the Green Valley East station on Horizon and Valle Verde Drive.

The fire stations are two of six proposed in a five-year plan to expand the city's fire protection.

Stations also are planned for Lake Las Vegas, Del Webb's Anthem, Calico Ridge and the city's southern entrance off U.S. 95. When completed, they will bring the city's total number of stations to 11.

Moss said he learned at a recent neighborhood meeting the likely response time for a fire team to his home on Upper Meadows Place could be as long as 15 to 20 minutes and 20 to 25 minutes for Seven Hills residences.

"In 15 to 20 minutes, my house is toast," he said.

The area is now served by the fire station on Green Valley Parkway north of Lake Mead Drive.

The five-year plan calls for the Green Valley East station to be operational by July 2000, while the Green Valley West station is scheduled to go on line January 2001.

"That's two years from now," Moss said. "We're fighting to get a station earlier than that."

Moss and his neighbors said a fire station should be built closer to them before any more houses are approved or constructed in the area, which includes Del Webb's Anthem and MacDonald Ranch master-planned communities. They would like to see a substation built near Eastern Avenue and Green Valley Parkway south of Lake Mead, which could serve the surrounding area including the Seven Hills, Moss said.

"We need some coverage," he said.

Councilman Jack Clark said Moss' arguments convinced him that city officials need to take another look at the plan.

City Manager Philip Speight said the five-year plan, with its additional stations and manpower, should reduce the department's average response time from 5.6 minutes to 5 or less. Under the plan, the department should begin planning a new fire station with every population increase of 20,000.

The plan more than doubles the number of firefighters and stations for the city. Developers are picking up 43 percent of the $27 million estimated price tag, according to Speight.

The plan calls for an additional 162 firefighters and paramedics to join the fire department's current 145 employees, Speight said.

The city is limited, he said, in that "We can presently train approximately one station every six months."