The delay means that should the council choose to send the proposal to voters, it will not be able to be on a ballot until April.

The bulk of the money from the bond would be used to build a new downtown fire station. The current downtown station, which was built in the 1960s, no longer fits the Mount Vernon Fire Department's needs, Chief Bryan Brice said.

The grant awarded them a 5-ton military truck and $20,000 for the fire pump and fire tank for the truck. This truck is not only a great benefit for Flour Bluff, but also for Padre Island because it helps to increase the firefighting capacity of the department.

Just in the last 3 years, the Nueces County Emergency Service District has battled 265 brush fires. The new brush truck with its 750-gallon water tank and foam capability can only help the department.

Several East Baton Rouge officials and members of the Amoroso family attended the Monday afternoon dedication of the EMS No. 12 station in the renovated building at the the intersection of Millerville Road and Old Hammond Highway. The new station, which opened last month, houses one ambulance and at least two EMS personnel around the clock. Officials said it will give them a home base with quick access to the interstate and communities up and down Old Hammond Highway.