Super-heated growth has Parrish scrambling. Here's how it will protect residents.

Stacey Bailey, the new fire chief of the Parrish Fire District, which serves a 97-square-mile area, says the stampede of growth coming to Parrish is "crazy, dynamic, exciting and challenging."

It's a bit scary, too, he said Thursday.

Construction of an estimated 23,000 homes has been approved or requested for the North River area, and nearly half of those are within the Parrish Fire District.

In addition, a new high school and a new elementary school are being constructed in Parrish, and one of Manatee County's most sensitive and important utilities, FPL's power plant, is located in Parrish.

On the surface, it would appear that the Parrish Fire District is behind the eight ball in meeting the challenges of growth.

After all, it has only one fire station.

But that doesn't tell an accurate story. The exploding growth was anticipated long ago and plans were made to provide fire protection for all the new roof tops. Those plans, delayed by the Great Recession, are now being implemented.

Under the department's five-year plan, a total of five fire stations are planned, focused on areas of most intense development.

Fire station No. 1, located at 12132 U.S. 301 N., would be joined by a second station at the Foxbrook neighborhood on State Road 675, and a third at the North River Ranch area, located one-half mile south of Buckeye Road and bordering U.S. 301 on the east side.

Pat and John Neal are planning 5,842 homes at North River Ranch.

A fourth station is proposed for the area of L3 Farms, 22015 State Road 62. A fifth station is proposed for the Gilley's Creek area.

It is anticipated that Station No. 2 at Foxbrook would open in 2020, and Station No. 3 would open at North River Ranch by 2022.

In addition, the district has launched a reserve responder program, allowing it to add reserve firefighters who can eventually be moved into full-time job positions.

Bailey calls it a real milestone to solving staffing issues.

"We are having no problem at all with the recruiting. We get two or three firefighters knocking on our door every day," Bailey said.

The fire district now has eight new reserve responders to supplement its 13 full-time firefighters.

Bailey's challenge is in implementing much of the planning done under the administration of former chief Michael Johnson, who retired in December.

Yet, he has a clear vision how a fire department is a fast developing area of the county can adapt and grow. He had a ringside seat on development at Lakewood Ranch as a battalion chief at East Manatee Fire Rescue District.

What it all boils down to is protection for property owners and the best possible insurance rates.

For instance, homeowners within five miles of the proposed Station 2 at Foxbrook now have some of the most expensive insurance in the county with an ISO (Insurance Services Office) rating of 10W. Once the new station opens, their ISO will become a much more affordable 4, Bailey said.

The good news for Parrish residents is that their $1.4 million fire district is on a solid financial footing without debt. Fire protection is paid for based on assessment on the square footage of a house, rather than on property taxes.

"Everything is paid for," Division Chief Michael D. Williamson said.

The leadership at the Parrish Fire Department is looking to grow with the community and has struck partnerships with the Parrish Community Foundation, the Parrish Civic Association and others.

"We are establishing public-private partnerships. We are asking our community how they want us to grow," Williamson said.

Growth has always been a driving force behind fire protection in Parrish. First organized as a volunteer fire department in 1979, it was designated the Parrish Fire District by an act of the Florida Legislature in 1984.

This story was originally published June 7, 2018 at 3:22 PM with the headline "Super-heated growth has Parrish scrambling. Here's how it will protect residents.."