Voters in the Cassville Volunteer Fire Protection District made their voices heard on Nov. 4, approving the proposed 1/2-cent sales tax to support operations.

More than 300 voters made a stop at the Family Life Center last Tuesday to cast ballots in the most unique April, August or November election I have covered in my dozen years in Barry County. What made it so special? It was the only issue on the ballot.

With no other local issues, no state candidates and no national candidates, the voter motivations were clear — either they were for it, or they were against it, plain and simple.

The 305 total votes split on a 67% to 33% margin in favor, resulting in the passage of the measure and the District taking in more than double its annual incoming in current property taxes.

A change in funding structure for the District has been a long time coming. Revenue has grown by about $5,000 a year since the District was formed in 2004. That sum barely pays for the average cost of one — yes one — firefighter turnout.

The Cassville Volunteer Fire Protection District was run by former Chief Millard Andrews for more than 30 years, up until his retirement in January 2024. Shortly after, Derek Acheson took the reins, and his impact is already being felt, though like his predecessor, I wouldn’t call accepting credit his forte.

Rather, Acheson has laid out a plan for the future of the District, one that will provide more opportunities and better service possibilities for his 18 volunteer staff members, many of whom work in other full-time emergency response positions — including Acheson himself, who works for Redings Mill Fire District in Joplin.

Acheson’s primary goal is to upgrade the District’s facilities to better support service and training. Along with building a training room, he aims to build living quarters at Station No. 1 and later at Station No. 2, which will allow staff to be on-site and reduce response times.

Plans for a classroom and a new training facility are also in the works, with the goal to improve local volunteers’ skills, which will help improve quality of service.

Building renovations and construction will be a tall task, as the District expects to take in $600,000 to $700,000 a year in sales tax income, and estimates for building improvements are in the $2 to $3 million range.

To achieve the District’s goals, Acheson said all funds received in 2026 will likely be put into reserve, allowing a full budget with new funding in 2027. It’s similar to the approach the county took with the law enforcement sales tax passed a few years ago. While it may take time to see the impact of the funds, I much prefer stewards of public dollars handle them responsibly versus spending what they can when they can straight out of the gate.

Beyond facilities, Acheson hopes to create a full-time position and part-time position at the District, ideally with him as a full-time chief with a part-time assistant. Any hiring decisions would be made by the District’s board, and given Acheson’s dedication to the District thus far, I hope a full-time hiring and exodus from Redings Mill is in the cards within the next year.

Cassville deserves a paid, full-time fire chief, and I can’t think of a better candidate right now than Acheson.

Rounding out the sales tax revenue wish list is upgrades to apparatus and gear. Some of the District’s vehicles have suffered from mechanical issues in recent years, but the District has been able to manage them. While parts for older firefighting vehicles may be hard to come by, maintenance and repairs are a whole lot cheaper than buying new apparatus.

Cassville’s newest truck is a 2004 model, which ran $250,000 brand new. The same vehicle today would run more than double, coming in at about $600,000.

With the vote confirmed and the funding pending, the future of the Cassville Volunteer Fire Protection District is bright. The new Cassville Firefighters Auxiliary is also helping with fundraising and financial efforts, and entities with such support more often than not find success.

After the proposal and as election day approached, Acheson said all along he hoped the result would tell him and the District what direction Cassville residents wanted emergency service providers to go.

The voters’ voices rang as loud as the station’s bells, delivering a resounding call: “Get to work, chief!”.

Kyle Troutman has served as editor of the Cassville Democrat since 2014 and owner/publisher since 2023.

He is a three-time ISWNE Golden Dozen award winner.

He may be reached at 417-847-2610 or ktroutman@cassville- democrat.com.