TheBakersfieldCalifornian.com

Bakersfield's newest fire station opened less than six months ago -- but it's already on the chopping block.

The possible closure of Fire Station 14 in the far southwest is one of the few big wrinkles in the city's proposed budget for the new fiscal year, which starts July 1.

The fire department needs to trim $890,000 from its $30 million-plus budget, said Bakersfield Fire Chief Ron Fraze. Such a large sum can only be met with staffing changes, he said.

Staff reductions that would allow Station 14 to stay open need union approval, but the city's relationship with its fire and police unions is contentious at best these days.

If no staffing agreement is in place when the city council next meets on June 30, the station closure may be the only option available to pass a balanced budget. The city has the ability to shut stations without union agreement.

Station 14, which opened Jan. 1, is located at 5815 Mountain Vista Drive, south of Harris Road and west of Old River Road. The roughly 8,000-square-foot facility cost more than $2 million to build.

Robert Melton, a firefighter engineer and president of the Bakersfield Firefighters Association, said the issue involves ongoing negotiations that he couldn't comment on. He did say union officials discussed the situation with Fraze Tuesday afternoon.

The union has been working without a contract since April 2008 and doesn't appear keen to forge a deal, especially in the wake of the council's recent decision to put a ballot measure before Bakersfield voters in November that would cut pension benefits for new city police and firefighters.

"It's not our job to set the level of service," Melton said, referring to the ratio of firefighters to city residents. "It's our job to protect the public."

The city council, staff and the city manager determine the level of service, Melton said, adding Bakersfield is among the lowest in the state with about 1/2 a firefighter for every 1,000 people.

"We're down as far as we can go," Melton said.

Whether the station closes or a staffing reduction is agreed on, Fraze said, the city will have fewer firefighters at the end of the year -- nine fewer if Station 14 is shuttered, eight fewer if staffing reductions are adopted. The department now counts 181 firefighters.

For city residents, it will mean fewer firefighters are on hand to respond to emergencies. Now, on any given day, 57 firefighters are on shift across the city, Fraze said. After the reductions, 55 will cover shifts.

The reduction won't require layoffs. Several retirements are expected before December, and the remaining displaced firefighters will be part of a pool that "backfills" overtime shifts around the department, Fraze said.

Chris Orr owns a home in the Greystone development just blocks away from the new station. He was aware the station might be closed because he'd seen a sign to that effect out front.

"I have mixed feelings," said Orr, a physical therapist. "I hate seeing a valid fire station go, but I wish the city had looked at its budget before building" something it couldn't sustain, he said.

The city already operates a station two miles away on Buena Vista Road, Orr said, and the county also has a station in the area. He grew up on Long Island in New York where the nearest station was 10 miles away and staffed by volunteers.

In the nearby Artisan tract, homeowner Iruthia Kumar hadn't yet heard about the possible closure.

"I think it's a lot of taxpayer money going down the drain," Kumar said, saying the situation showed "bad planning" by the city.

"It's so sad, actually," he said.

Fraze said any changes will need to be in place by July 1 in order to meet financial goals. A delay means deeper cuts later.

Closing Station 14 would save about $1.1 million a year, more than than the required budget cut for his department. The building would be secured and could be re-opened later when the city has more money.

Councilmember Harold Hanson, whose ward includes Station 14, said the situation was "brutal."

Response times will be slower in that area if the station closes, he said. The facility had been planned when the area was growing quickly, but buildout is now less than expected.

"Obviously, I would prefer to have the station remain open," Hanson said, adding: "Sometimes we have to make hard decisions."