FAIRFIELD TWP. — Residents of Fairfield Township can now expect to be serviced through a newly renovated fire station. The public was able to view the renovations at an open house that took place Dec. 14 at the station, located at 9965 Brown St. in Weston.
The renovations were paid for with money from the general fund, as well as some funding that came from federal grants, said Chris McAllister, Fairfield Township supervisor. The total cost of the renovation was just over $500,000, he said.
The work for the renovation was done by a local construction business, Creekside Carpentry of Jasper, and was completed by local workers, McAllister said.
McAllister said the renovations included opening up space in the building by tearing down internal walls, making the doors for the fire trucks to enter and exit the building bigger, raising the ceilings, adding new floors, and upgrading the heating and electrical systems.
“Basically, we opened the entire barn up,” McAllister said, referring to the work that was done to make better use of the existing space.
The Fairfield Township Fire Department was formed in 1946. Fairfield Township covers 42 square miles, and the fire department serves about 1,650 residents.
The fire department staff consists of 13 paid on-call firefighters, McAllister said. The firefighters respond to about five calls a month for emergencies that include fires, rescues, accidents and citizen assists. The fire department has three fire trucks and one rescue vehicle.
Although there is no full-time staff on the fire department, McAllister said the vehicles are maintained to be ready for emergencies at any time.
“We keep them ready because they have to be ready at any time to go out the door,” he said.
McAllister said the renovations to the fire station are part of the ongoing financial support the township has always given to the fire department.
“The township has always invested in the fire station,” McAllister said. “The board today took the next step toward making this an effective building for the next 50 years.”
Anyone interested in becoming a firefighter needs to complete the state-required Firefighter I and II classes through the Lenawee County Fire Chiefs Association, said Capt. Rob Shadewald of the fire department.
