The chief of the Athens Fire Department says new annexations into the city, such as University Estates’ 830 acres of housing developments, could hamper the department’s ability to quickly reach emergencies near the expanded city limits.

Staffing levels have not increased in the past 30 years at the department, meaning the department doesn’t have enough people to run as many trucks as it otherwise might for some emergencies, fire Chief Bob Troxel said.

"I’m concerned about the city growing larger and not increasing the fire department’s capabilities," said Troxel. “I don’t have an issue with growth as long as we maintain basic infrastructures and personnel levels in the fire department.”

University Estates and The Ridges are the largest annexations into the city since the 1980s and significantly increased the city’s landmass, though many others did not, said Code Enforcement Director Steve Pierson.

No staffing or building changes have been made to the fire department to accommodate the 48 condominiums and 42 single-family homes that are part of the first phase of construction in University Estates. Sixteen of those housing units already are occupied, said Cheryl Brunello, the resident coordinator at University Estates.

“The number of buildings isn’t as much of an issue as it is how far the city spreads out,” said city Service-Safety Director Ray Hazlett. “Our firefighter crews are at a minimum.”

The State Fire Marshal Division does not set a minimum standard for staffing levels or a maximum acceptable response time, said division spokesman Shane Cartmill.

In case of a fire or disaster, the department can call on mutual aide agreements with other fire departments to help, Hazlett said.

The response times are still delayed, however. In fact, if a train were on the tracks that cross state Route 682, Athens firefighters would not be able to reach University Estates at all, Troxel said.

Some solutions include increasing the income tax to fund a new fire station beyond the railroad tracks and increasing the number of firefighters on each shift, Troxel said.

The city’s budget does not allow for these changes, Troxel and Athens City Council members said.

`“We’ve looked at the budget with the administration and have not made adjustments because we did not feel we could make that magnitude of a commitment for the personnel that were necessary,” said Councilman Jim Sands, D-at large.

The fire department received 21 percent of the total city budget, or almost $2.3 million, for 2007. Only the police department received more, at 27.9 percent of the total budget, or about $3 million.

Two of the 25 authorized positions in the fire department remain open because there is not enough money to pay the firefighters, according to city records. University Estates might force City Council to find ways to reconfigure the fire department, said Sands.

Mayor Ric Abel said building a new fire station is something the new administration will have to look into.