Westmont unveils three options to replace Station 183 after decades of leaks, cramped bays and rising calls

Deputy Chief Tom Frank of the Westmont Fire Department led a public tour and presentation at the Frank J. Johanek Firehouse (Station 183) where village officials and consultants outlined three options to repair or replace the 1991-built facility.

Frank said the station has persistent roof leaks, narrow apparatus bays that were sized for older, smaller vehicles, no dedicated meeting space, and inadequate decontamination and living-quarters separation. “The building’s kinda lived beyond its expectations here, and it’s time to do something about it,” Frank said during the tour.

Why it matters: Westmont fire officials said call volume has risen sharply since 1991, when the station opened — from about 1,253 calls in 1991 to 5,516 calls last year — and that the village’s concentration of nursing and medical facilities raises demand for emergency medical responses. Fire Chief Steve Riley said the department is “an ISO Class 1” and accredited but that maintaining that level of service “is getting harder and harder when we’re doing it out of the building that we’re doing.”

Three design options and trade-offs

- Temporary rehab (estimated $10–11 million): remodels the existing building’s interior to add decontamination zones and…