Voters pass mill levy

Whitefish voters overwhelmingly approved the idea of raising their property taxes in order to support 24/7 firefighter-paramedic services.

Sixty-one percent of the mail-in ballots favored adding 24 mills to the current 111 mills to raise $464,759 to pay for six additional emergency personnel.

The total mills is significantly less than the 164-mill average for the state's 10 largest cities, and the effective tax rate has been 87 mills after the resort tax rebate

The results of the mail-in election that ended at 8 p.m. Tuesday night were 1,010 in favor and 630 opposed.

The cost of the additional 24 mills could be $100 to $150 per year, depending upon the assessed value of a home in Whitefish.

The number of night calls for emergency personnel has increased by 30 percent since 2004, reaching on average more than two per night in 2007, while the number of firefighters has held steady at 10.

Whitefish must provide 24/7 emergency services once it reaches a population of 10,000 and becomes a Class 1 city. That is expected to happen by the next federal census in 2010.