CITY OF KATY (Covering Katy News) — A planned fire station and police substation at Texas Heritage Marketplace is among the major public safety investments included in the City of Katy's proposed $90 million budget discussed during a budget workshop Wednesday.
When finished, the facility will be on Heritage Oak Lane, near Interstate 10 and Texas Heritage Parkway. The Waller County site sits outside the Katy city limits but within the city's extraterritorial jurisdiction.
The city's comprehensive plan identified the need for an additional fire station to improve response times as residential and commercial development expands in western Katy.
The plan said the fire station should be designed to house a pumper apparatus vehicle and a medical unit and accommodate 12 personnel. The proposed budget also includes $580,000 for an ambulance, $1.1 million for a reserve engine and $2.655 million for a ladder truck as part of the city's fire department spending.
Planning for a new substation
The facility has not yet been designed, though the city earlier this year hired Slattery Tackett Associates to design it. The firm has been involved in work on the city's previous fire stations.
“Right now, we’re just starting to work on the drawings and the diagrams, how big this space needs to be,” Police Chief Bryon Woytek said. “We’re just in initial stages of planning the footprint of the substation.”
Woytek said the fire department would have the larger share of the building, given the trucks and equipment that would be kept there. He said the police portion of the substation would be about 2,000 square feet and have workspaces for six officers.
“We’ll have two shifts run out of there,” Woytek said. “Those officers, that would be their assigned station, but we don’t have somebody sitting at a desk. It’s no different than the station here. They go there, they get their patrol unit, they go to work and they patrol the area. They’ll use the substation for case reports and that kind of thing. That’ll basically be their office instead of coming to the main station. They’ll office out of that substation.”
A small kitchen area will be included, and equipment for the department's bike patrol will also be kept there.
“They will have bikes over there, and of course, spots for our vehicles,” Woytek said. “Most of it’s going to be a station for the officers to come and go out of the workstation.”
The facility is expected to provide faster response times to the growing commercial and residential areas on Katy's western side.
“If they have to come from the north side of town to the south side of town, prime traffic, that may take 20 minutes,” Woytek said. “Having more officers over there staged on that side of town to respond to calls is definitely going to be able to lower our call volume when those calls for service happen over on that side.”
Hebert: City in a strong financial position
In a letter accompanying the proposed budget, City Administrator Byron Hebert wrote that the city is starting the new fiscal year in a strong position, though economic uncertainties will likely remain.
“Sales tax, one of the city’s most significant revenue sources, remains inherently volatile and sensitive to broader economic conditions and consumer spending trends,” Hebert wrote, adding that an increasing population, evolving community needs and possible natural disasters must also be kept in mind.
Expenses: Police, contingency and fire get largest share
The budget is broken down into four categories. The general fund is the largest and covers the city's basic operations. The proposed $68.7 million general fund is a 14.7% increase from the current $59.9 million. Police ($16.4 million), contingency ($15.6 million) and fire ($11.7 million) are the largest categories in the general fund. The contingency fund provides a reserve for expenses not otherwise budgeted.
The enterprise fund covers city water and wastewater operations and is expected to decrease by $5 million from last year.
The debt service fund is expected to increase by $206,698 from last year. The hotel tax fund is expected to increase by $50,000.
Revenues: Proposed property tax rate to drop
The proposed budget calls for a property tax rate of $0.42 per $100 of assessed valuation, a $0.005 decrease from last year's $0.425 rate. Despite the lower rate, the budget would raise about $1.5 million more in property tax revenue than last year's budget. Property tax revenue from new property added to this year's tax roll is $241,066.
Hebert said the city will continue to offer a 20% homestead exemption, the highest percentage allowed under state law.
Budget review and adoption schedule
The Katy City Council will hold a public hearing on the proposed budget at its Sept. 14 meeting. The council is expected to vote on adopting the budget at its Sept. 28 meeting.
Also at the Sept. 28 meeting, the council will hold a public hearing on the proposed property tax rate and is expected to vote on adopting the rate.