Townships cite concerns over cost of fire protection
The fire department, in addition to providing protection for the city of
That fee wasn't the cause for concern among township representatives. Rather, they were vocal about the nearly
In 2010, the department purchased a pumper for rural use, which was to be paid off over a period of 10 years by the townships. With extra payments and income from insurance fees, the pumper was paid off in less than eight years. Township officials said they thought that meant their payments would be reduced.
Call said the new truck is needed to replace a 25-year-old truck in the department, and will go out on all city and rural fires. Of the total cost of the truck,
Some township officials questioned buying a brand new truck when they could save hundreds of thousands of dollars buying a used model.
"I know there's a lot of wants, but we've got to slow our spending down," said
"Do we need that truck right now in 2019 or can we wait a few years?" asked
"The way the price of corn is right now, it's not going to be a good deal," he said.
"The township fire budget is probably 40 percent of our budget," Top said. He wanted to make sure
"Everyone is for fire protection, but the people want roads, too," Top said. "Other fire departments are (providing service) for less money."
Gravel for township roads is the biggest expense in
Aside from the cost of the new truck, the cost for the radios was also questioned.
"I just got two small grants and I asked for radios,"
Hearing that some grant money was received for radios, Schmuck asked if there was such funding to help pay for the new rescue/pumper truck.
Call said grants for fire trucks for cities the size of
"It makes a lot of sense for everyone in the county to go to
None of the township officials complained about fire service. In fact, they said LFD does a good job.
Townships can opt out of their annual fire service contract with the LFD if they choose, and those at the meeting said they will discuss the issue further.
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