Several Fayette aldermen discussed frustrations with the Howard County Ambulance District’s plan to disregard the city’s denial of a conditional use zoning change to build a new ambulance base inside a residential neighborhood. On Tuesday, May 12, the council voted 5-0, with one member abstaining, to deny a zoning change request for four lots the district purchased last November on the corner of South Williams and Cooper streets, about two blocks south of the current ambulance base adjacent to the Keller Building. The denial was in large part due to widespread calls by neighborhood residents to maintain the RS1 designation requiring single-family homes.

The following day, the ambulance district sent a letter to the city declaring its intent to build there anyway, claiming the city does not have the jurisdiction to deny the permit because the base is a public facility.

At the council’s most recent meeting on Tuesday, May 26, East Ward Alderman David Frees called what the ambulance district is doing a “travesty.”

“I think that to ignore every single person in that neighborhood what they want is ridiculous. And it quite frankly had me really ticked off for several days,” Frees said. “Anyone and everyone that you know that is not for that, I think, should raise a ruckus about it. I just think that that is a real slap in the face to the citizens of Fayette.”

Other aldermen were equally upset about the ambulance district’s decision.

“The attitude is kind of offensive. When you put zoning in quotation marks as if it’s not really a law. That was in their lead announcement. Like we don’t have any authority. And that RS1 has no value. The residential district has no value. That in and of itself is ridiculous and offensive,” said Southeast Ward Alderman J.B. Waggoner. “There’s no recognition that there is merit in considering that we should not put a commercial facility there. That’s the problem.”

Northwest Ward Alderman Pat Roll said the district went about its building plan the wrong way. “So they’ve done this all the way around backwards from the beginning. Whatever we can do, we should do. Fight as hard as we should. We do what we think is right, and yet it doesn’t matter.”

New board member Bradley Patty suggested the citizens make their voices heard at the ballot box. The problem is, the board rarely holds a formal election since the number of candidates often matches the number of open seats. “Ultimately, the ambulance board answers to the people,” he said. “If this does prevail, I would stress that we have every right to demand upgrades on water and electricity, especially the runoff. We have every right for the ambulance board to take these upgrades.”

On Sunday, Assistant Ambulance District Director Tim Flaspohler announced the district would hold its next monthly board meeting in the large conference room at the Keller Building. The meeting begins at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, June 10.