Northfield wins $26,936 turnout-gear grant as council authorizes bids for fire station addition

The Village of Northfield will replace aging turnout gear for its firefighters after the Fire Department was awarded a $26,936 grant from the Firehouse Subs Public Safety Foundation, Fire Chief Jason Buss announced at the Jan. 22 council meeting.

Chief Buss said the department’s current gear is about nine years old and the grant will fund replacement of roughly 26 sets. He also reported that the fire station addition and renovation project is on schedule to be advertised for bids.

At the same meeting, Council unanimously adopted Resolution 2020-03, an emergency measure authorizing advertisement for bids for the fire station addition and renovation. Councilmember Alan Hipps moved to suspend the three-reading rule and Renell Noack seconded; the suspension passed. Gary Vojtush moved for passage and Hipps seconded; the motion carried without opposition.

Chief Buss also updated council on department operations: an extra ambulance was placed on standby during a recent county law-enforcement investigation, and a firefighter injured Dec. 15, 2019 after a slip incident required later surgery; the firefighter is expected to return to full duty in April 2020.

The resolution adopted at the meeting authorizes staff to proceed with advertising the construction work, moving the project toward competitive bidding. The council did not discuss contract awards or a construction timeline beyond advancing the bid process.

The council also adopted Resolution 2020-04, an emergency appropriation amendment (see separate coverage), which could affect budgeting for capital projects including the fire station work.