The Riverside City Council voted 3-2 on Monday to end talks with Wellman and Kalona to base a county ambulance in Riverside.

The dividing issue was who would pay for the service.

The ambulance would’ve required a $125,000 check from the City of Riverside but would still service the entire northern half of Washington County.

Although it would have been based in Riverside, the requirement of full-county coverage meant the ambulance would not guarantee the five-minute response time the council was hoping to achieve.

“I think that us paying $125,000 for that vehicle to go to Washington more than us, we’re spending $125,000 for another city to take more advantage of it than us,” Councilperson Edgar McGuire said at the meeting. “I know that it is a safety net for us, but at the same time I don’t think that a safety net is worth $125,000.”

Although she voted against breaking off talks, Councilperson Jeanine Redlinger shared McGuire’s sentiment.

“A third crew would be great, but I don’t think it should be at Riverside’s expense completely,” she said. “I don’t understand why Wellman and Kalona aren’t willing to pay some to help cover a third crew because it is a benefit for them.

Mayor Allen Schneider emphasized that splitting the bill was not on the table.

“That’s not an option that we’re talking about, if there is going to be one in the northern half of the county, it is going to be at additional cost to the city,” he said.

As it stands, ambulance crews responding from Washington are the same distance as Riverside from Wellman, so the latter would not substantially benefit from a Riverside-based ambulance.

Kalona was unwilling to split the bill because it considered itself a better host as a more central location and thought the bill a fair trade for Riverside to disproportionately benefit from a new full-time crew, according to Schneider’s report of the talks.

Council members Redlinger and Lois Schneider voted to continue the talks, but McGuire, Tom Sexton and Andy Rodgers voted against.