Propositton S, a 33-cent tax-rate increase that voters will consider next week, is de-signed to fund the first five years of a 10-year, long-range plan recommended by the Mehlville Fire Protectton District’s Fire Dis-trict Advisory Committee for Tomorrow’s Emergency Services.

The projected cost of funding the first five years of the 10-year, long-range plan is $32,631,858. The major components of the 10-year long-range plan are:

• A balanced budget, maintaining the current level of service and restoring staffing to 84 firefighters and 36 paramedics. Based on historical trends, the district will need $19,520,557 over the next five years to balance the budget and maintain its current level of operations, according to district Comptroller Jeff Geisler.

• Restoring training and public education. To restore training and education funds for all personnel and public education programs, such as fire safety, first aid, car-seat installation and cardiopulmonary resuscitation, the district will need $965,226 over the next five years, according to the comptroller.

• Restoring service/staffing to keep the rescue squad and fifth ambulance in service 100 percent of the time. Funding to keep the rescue squad and fifth ambulance in service over the next five years is projected to be $6,299,183, according to the comptroller.

• Apparatus and vehicle replacement in accordance with the district’s strategic plan — the replacement of four pumpers and six ambulances. The district will need $3,289,312 over the next five years to fund its apparatus and vehicle replacement schedule, according to Geisler.

• Phase one of the facilities plan, including the replacement of Firehouse No. 2, renovation and maintenance projects at firehouses 3, 4, 6 and 7, and construction of a training tower. Any future land acquisitton would be done with the net of proceeds from property beio wsold. The district will need $2,557,580 over the next five years to fund the maintenance and im-provement of its facilities, according to the comptroller.

To generate the roughly $32.6 million that would be needed to fund the first phase of the 10-year long-range plan, a 33-cent tax-rate increase would be necessary.

The annual cost to the owner of a home assessed at $100,000 would be $62.70 or $5.23 per month, according to Geisler’s calculations.