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Fire chief requests repeater, air packs and a new sky boom ladder truck; warns multi-year build and down-payment timing
Summary
Fire Chief Wefferling told the council that a vehicle-mounted digital repeater and a permanent antenna would address radio gaps, and that a replacement sky boom ladder truck would take four years to build with the first payment due in three years, prompting discussion of financing timing and mutual-aid reliance.
Fire Chief Wefferling told the council the department needs several pieces of equipment to maintain safe operations, including replacement air packs and a sky boom ladder truck to replace an aging unit and tank.
“We would also research a permanent antenna to be placed on the cell tower at Mountain Avenue and Arbor Road,” Wefferling said, and he described field tests in other parts of Essex County that support a vehicle-mounted digital repeater to bridge interior and exterior reception gaps. He told council members that the proposed truck, if ordered this year, will take four (4) years to build with the first payment needed in three (3) years.
Council members discussed relying on mutual aid from neighboring municipalities for ladder capability while the borough waits for a new apparatus, and Mayor Raymond warned that an initial down payment on a bond ordinance would have an immediate taxpayer impact. The council did not vote on purchasing at the meeting; the item remained in the capital planning discussion.
