Some members of the Village of Savoy are expected to be eligible to receive fire-protection services from the city of Champaign starting in December.

The Champaign City Council gave city staff direction Tuesday to extend services to citizens of Savoy who will no longer be receiving protection from the Savoy fire department.

Champaign Fire Chief Dave Penicook said the Savoy City Council voted at its first meeting, in early July, to discontinue service to approximately 230 residents in the area between Kirby Avenue, Duncan Road, Windsor Road and Staley Road. Penicook cited the distance of the area in question from the village as the reason for halting service.

The residents affected were invited to an open house at Champaign’s Fire Station 6 in late October to discuss the potential for extending Champaign’s services. Penicook said the purpose of the open house was to assure residents that they had options and would not be left without rescue services after April 1, 2007, when Savoy will discontinue service.

If the ordinance directed by council is passed as expected in early December, affected properties will pay 35 cents per $100 of equalized assessed value for residential properties and 70 cents per $100 for commercial and industrial properties, the same rates applied to properties within Champaign city limits.

Such services will be offered for a period of 10 years to properties that are not contiguous to the city. Contiguous properties would need to negotiate an annexation agreement in order to be eligible.

The ten-year period would allow for the possibility that the area in question could become part of the city of Champaign. If they are not contiguous to city limits at the end of the ten years, an option to extend services will be discussed.