Summerville residents are going to be paying more for fire protection in 2023.  The move by the Summerville City Council to increase rates by 22% was approved at last week’s mid-year budget meeting.

The council has voted to build a new fire station and to purchase a new fire truck.  The fire truck alone is going to cost the city $759,000.  The new fire station is something that was first publicly mentioned at last week’s meeting.  Originally, the council was thinking about a 20% raise in fire protection fees, but on a recommendation from Mayor Harvey, the council voted to go the extra 2% and put the added money in a fund to build a new fire station in the future.

Not all council members were in favor of the move.  Councilman Rickey Hughes told WZQZ News that he voted against the measure because he didn’t think that fee hike was in the best interest of Summerville residents who are on a fixed income.