Brownstown asks for $1.48 million to buy ladder truck to maintain regional fire readiness

Brownstown Township officials told the appropriations subcommittee they need state support to replace aging fire apparatus after selling an unreliable ladder truck and auctioning a backup engine.

"This year, we made a difficult decision to sell our aging ladder truck, due to reliability concerns and skyrocketing maintenance costs," Brownstown Fire Chief Ryan Roman said. He told lawmakers the department serves more than 30,000 residents across a 30‑square‑mile area and that a modern ladder truck provides essential life‑safety capabilities for multifamily and commercial structure fires.

Chief Roman said the low bid for the lighter ladder truck the department sought came in at $1,479,966 and noted an additional roughly $70,000 in equipment is required to outfit the vehicle. He described a 14–16 month manufacturer build time for this model and emphasized that mutual aid partners cannot be relied on indefinitely as those partners face their own capacity constraints.

Committee members asked whether the department had sourced trucks and about auction procedures for retired apparatus; Roman said the department had solicited bids and expects the selected vehicle to meet operational needs and deliverability in the 14–16 month range. The request was presented as an investment in readiness and regional mutual aid; no vote was taken at the hearing.