Ironton City Council will keep the ball rolling on the city’s proposed new fire station, despite a questionable budget.

Friday, April 14, 2000

Ironton City Council will keep the ball rolling on the city’s proposed new fire station, despite a questionable budget.

At the regular meeting Thursday, council acted on the advice of finance committee and renewed a $90,000 bond –  a move that will allow all fire station money to be kept in one payment once work is completed.

"This is simply a renewal of money we have already borrowed," council member Jesse Roberts clarified. "This is not an additional amount that we are borrowing."

Traditionally, all bonds with multiple parts are handled in this way in the city, council chairman Jim Tordiff said.

"The advantage of handling it in this manner is that the money would be a part of the big picture later. There would be no confusion later about whether this money was part of the total amount that might cause another amount being budgeted," Tordiff said. "It was council’s decision in the past that the fire fee would eventually bring in enough money to pay for both the new station and the fire truck, but it may be, with budget concerns, that we will need to reevaluate later to determine if the city can afford the original $1 million estimate."

Once constructed, the new fire station, a project stretching more than a year in the city, will replace the antiquated existing station, which is scheduled for demolition. During construction, the city will seek alternative housing for the county’s only non-volunteer fire department.

Although the total project was originally estimated at $1 million, architects predicted going over budget and, late last year, city administrators returned to the drawing board and cut the proposed two-story building to a one-floor plan.

Additionally, Ironton Mayor Bob Cleary said the architects based their construction and materials cost estimates on the more expensive Columbus area rates. With local pricing, the overall cost should remain at or below the originally estimated budget, Cleary said.

In other business, council:

– Recognized the efforts of the Ironton-Lawrence County Community Action Organization and the Ohio Department of Development, as well as all individuals involved in bringing Liebert Corp. to Ironton.

–  Agreed to signing a release agreement with Liebert Corp. for the duration of 10 years.

–  Recognized the business loop signs for the U.S. 52 business route are now in place.

–  Added a resolution of support for Ironton’s Make-A-Difference Day and asked for residents to also support the efforts of these volunteers.