Debate at the city council meeting Tuesday was another story of “East Side, West Side.”
The council committed $219,000 for land at Lawrence Avenue and Rickard Road for a new fire station. Ald. Roy Williams took notice.
“We’re getting three brand new fire stations” west of Veterans Parkway, he said, “to the newest part of town, on the side with the best homes and the best whatever. But then in my ward in the oldest wards, (fire houses were built in) 1950-something, real small fire stations.
“I just want you to remember what perception looks like and what it always tends to be for the east side.”
Fire chief Brandon Blough (pictured) defended the site selection process.
“We know this is where the people are,” he told aldermen Tuesday. “We need to be within four minutes of these people in case they have a fire or a medical emergency at their house and to find the closest place (to the most people), which is hard to do.”
The purchase is pending results of an environmental study.
Williams voted Present, while Ald. Joe McMenamin voted No. The other eight aldermen voted for the purchase.