- October 5, 2026
The Palm Coast City Council is backing a proposed ordinance that would protect the city’s Fire Department from being transferred to another agency without voter approval.
The proposed ordinance was presented during the council’s Sept. 8 workshop.
Under the proposed ordinance, the city could not sell, transfer or enter into a long-term lease of the Palm Coast Fire Rescue Department, or a substantial operational component of it, unless the City Council first approves the action by a supermajority vote and a majority of voters then approve it in a citywide referendum.
The ordinance was drafted by City Attorney Marcus Duffy at the direction of the council.
History of the Palm Coast Fire Department
Fire Chief Kyle Berryhill used the discussion to highlight the department’s history and its connection to Palm Coast’s incorporation.
The Palm Coast Fire Department began in 1973, more than 25 years before Palm Coast became a city. The Palm Coast Fire Service District was established in 1975, with fire protection among its central responsibilities, and the first career firefighter was hired in 1983.
Berryhill also pointed to the devastating wildfires that struck the area in 1985 and 1998. The 1985 fires destroyed approximately 134 homes, while the 1998 wildfire season burned more than 82,000 acres in Flagler County and destroyed 71 homes.
Palm Coast residents voted 2-to-1 to incorporate in September 1999. Berryhill said the community’s desire for stronger, locally controlled fire service was a significant part of the push to become a city. Fire Department employees were also among Palm Coast’s first employees after incorporation.
Today, the department provides paramedic-level first response and maintains an ISO Class 2 fire protection rating. In the previous 365 days, Palm Coast firefighters responded to 18,616 calls for service, or more than 50 per day. Berryhill said the department also consistently receives ratings above 90% in the city’s citizen survey.
“There’s an important distinction between examining how we sustainably fund fire protection and making it easier to dismantle or consolidate a municipal fire service that our citizens have clearly chosen to build,” Berryhill said.
No proposal to consolidate
The ordinance would not prevent the PCFD from working with other agencies. It includes exceptions allowing mutual aid and automatic aid agreements, agreements for specialized training or shared dispatch services and the routine sale or disposal of obsolete or decommissioned vehicles and equipment. Those agreements could not divest Palm Coast of its ultimate ownership, control and operational authority over the department.
Council members stressed that the ordinance is a proactive measure rather than a response to an active attempt to consolidate the PCFD with Flagler County Fire Rescue.
Council member David Sullivan said he was not aware of any significant movement toward consolidation. Berryhill said cooperation between the city and county fire departments is currently the best he has seen during his 21 years with the department.
Council member Ty Miller said he has seen discussions on social media suggesting municipalities consolidate core services with the county to save money. He said those discussions can overlook the reasons Palm Coast residents wanted their own city and fire department.
“We wanted our own municipal fire department,” Miller said. “And so I think this takes a step to kind of just ensure that if that sentiment were to grow, that this protects our fire department and our level of service here.”
Vice Mayor Theresa Pontieri also supported the ordinance and said protecting the department goes beyond its call volume.
“I think it’s really important that we continue to make sure we protect them and that they stand on their own,” Pontieri said.
Pontieri later described PCFD as a “well run, well financed, very fiscally responsible department” and said she wanted the city to protect its autonomy and allow it to continue operating that way.
No council members proposed changes to the ordinance during the workshop. The measure will next have to return to the City Council for a formal first reading. If approved on first reading, it would later return for a second reading and public hearing before it could be adopted. The draft ordinance states it would take effect immediately upon final passage.
