42-136. Emergency Services Impact Report

An Emergency Services Impact Report (ESIR) may be required to evaluate the public safety of a proposed development and the effect it will have on the County’s existing Fire and Emergency Medical Services (EMS). The report and requirements are in addition to those requirements and review of the internal design of the development. An ESIR shall be required for subdivisions proposing one-hundred lots/units or more, or subdivisions proposing more than 50 units located more than five (5) road miles from a fire station and shall be submitted as part of master plan approval.

  1. Proximity and Impact to Existing Services. Residential and nonresidential subdivisions shall provide documentation to identify if a proposed development or portion thereof is outside of a Fire Insurance District or is more than five (5) road miles from an existing fire station. The developer shall also provide documentation identifying the response time to the nearest existing EMS station based on an average 35 miles per hour. The ESIR shall state the location of the EMS substation, the response time in minutes, the route from the proposed development including road names and classifications, number of passing areas and posted speed limits, and the method of calculation.
  2. Fire Suppression Water Supply. Residential and nonresidential subdivisions shall provide documentation to identify water resources for fire suppression. The developer shall also provide documentation identifying the type of water source (static or pressurized), number and spacing of hydrants, capacity, flow rate in gallons per minute, and static and residual pressures.
  3. Based on the findings of the ESIR and the recommendation of County Staff or the approving authority, a proposed development may be required to be built at a maximum density of one (1) unit per three (3) acres. However, the developer may volunteer to provide emergency equipment, vehicles, land and/or facilities to the County to serve the development in order to waive the density reduction, provided the County decides the site is appropriate for a new fire or EMS substation.