Voters in Kingfisher will have the opportunity next year to vote to extend a sales tax to fully fund the construction of a new fire station.

City commissioners voted last Tuesday to call for a special election on Jan. 14, 2025.

The ballot will ask voters if they wish to continue a one-half cent sales tax for an additional 10 years.

The fire station is set to be built at 1501 S. Main St. and the current timeline is for construction to begin next spring.

Voters in May 2021 passed the original FIRE (fire, infrastructure, recreation, emergency services) tax that was projected to bring in just over $8 million over 10 years.

However, construction costs began to skyrocket in the post-COVID world and according to the facility’s architect Ray Holliday of BRW Architects, Inc., “they haven’t come back down.”

It’s now projected the 16,500 square foot facility will cost about $8.2 million which caused city leaders to seek input on resolutions to close the funding gap.

Commissioners, City Manager Jim Thomas and fire department members hosted a community discussion last month and floated the idea of extending the sales tax for an additional 10 years once the current tax expires.

Thomas said at Tuesday’s meeting that he was optimistic that the community would support the sales tax extension from the support shown at the open meeting.

Thomas said he felt those in attendance understood that the new facility was not extravagant and that it would meet the needs of the city for the next 50 years.

Currently the tax on purchases in Kingfisher is 9.25 cents.

The city gets 3.5 cents of that, of which 2 cents goes into city’s accounts, 1 cent toward the hospital and then the half-cent for the fire, infrastructure, recreation, emergency services If citizens vote to extend the FIRE tax, sales tax in the city would remain at 9.25 cents.

The current tax runs through 2032, meaning an extention would push the half-cent sales tax to 2042.

As was the intent with the original sales tax, any tax collected beyond the cost of the fire department will go toward other city improvements.

Mayor Geoff Covalt, Vice Mayor Jeff Wittrock and commissioners Dawn Taylor and Debbie Burpo voted for the proposal to call for the election.

Commissioner Kyle Mecklenburg was unable to attend the meeting.

Also attending the meeting were Thomas, City Clerk Brittney Hladik, City Treasurer Anita James and City Attorney Jared Harrison.

In other business the commissioners authorized that several pieces of equipment be declared surplus items and be auctioned or sold for scrap metal, with proceeds going to the city bank accounts.

Thomas said he visited with department heads and declared “operation clean sweep” which addressed the clutter of “junk” equipment which included old mowers, tillers, rakes, a 1984 tractor and other related items.

He said the disposal of these items was long overdue, as the departments were no longer using the equipment.

The commissioners also approved an 80/20 grant for the purchase of drying racks and related gear for the cost of $20,000 for the fire department.

The city will pay for 20 percent ($4,000) of the purchase, and the other 80 percent ($16,000) would be covered by a NODA (Northern Oklahoma Development Authority), Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry grant.

The commissioners also approved a motion that True North Geographic Technologies be hired to create a GIS (geographic information system) mapping for the Kingfisher Cemetery so that a detailed map of all cemetery plots will be digitally identified through the city’s webpage. The cost for the project will be $21,500. Thomas commented that there are approximately 20,000 graves in the cemetery and the mapping would be very helpful for relatives and friends of the deceased to locate their loved ones’ exact burial locations through an online process. In other business, the commissioners allowed a permit exemption variance for Kenneth Jung for a metal building on his property located at 2202 South 13th St. The city’s planning and zoning board recommended the exemption. Compliance officer Linda Garcia commented that she had been to the property and she had no problems with the structure. Wittrock commented that he had no problems with the variance as well, but he felt the city should either do away with the building ordinance or begin holding citizens to finishing their building to the required codes. In the treasurer’s report, James said the city was staying on budget with approximately $9.8 million of unencumbered cash in bank accounts. Thomas commented that sales tax collections remained “flat” and the city will continue to follow conservative spending practices.