BONDURANT, Iowa — Bondurant’s emergency services are undergoing some changes.

In October, the department transitioned from a staff reliant on volunteers to paid part-time and full-time employees. Assistant Chief Anthony Rauterberg for Bondurant Emergency Services said that over the last two decades, there has been a lack of volunteers and an increase in emergency calls to their department.

The department receives around 900 calls a year. Rauterberg said six personnel are needed to respond to emergencies, four are assigned to a fire truck to respond to structure fires and two are assigned to an ambulance.

The department says there are around 30 employees in total now. Since October, seven part-time positions have been filled, and six of these employees were previously volunteers. Rauterberg said the recent employment change is beneficial for the department because having more members in the station leads to faster response times.

“It’s a sign of the times, how things have transitioned, what community expectations have changed throughout the years, but also it is beneficial towards the community and the department,” he said.

The city is also in the process of building a new emergency services facility. The city broke ground in October on a 6.49-acre site, located on the southeastern portion of the Civic Campus.

The 29,000-square-foot building will house the city’s ambulances, fire trucks, and expanded emergency response staff. According to Rauterberg, the current station can fit into the bay of the new station.

The facility is projected to be ready for use by October 2025.