‘REOPEN THE FIREHOUSE’
To the editor,
I am certain that all of you now know that another house fire occurred in the Silver Lake area of Belleville. This is the second one in a week in Silver Lake. Thankfully, nobody was injured or killed in these fires.
It goes without saying that Belleville’s firefighters, as well as those from towns near and far who answered the call of mutual aid, worked tirelessly and valiantly to knock down, control and finally extinguish these obviously stubborn fires. These men and women deserve our thanks and admiration.
In the past year, Silver Lake residents have been told a variety of things about the Silver Lake firehouse, why it had been closed and what [the mayor and council] intended to do about it. We were initially told the roof was damaged and that there was asbestos in the building, thus rendering it uninhabitable.
When we were later told that inspectors determined the building did not have asbestos and monies – more than $200,000 – had been bonded for improvements, it appeared the reopening of the firehouse would become a reality, even if it would take some time for repairs and renovations.
It is in the best interest of Silver Lake, and Belleville as a whole, for [the mayor and council] to honor the commitment you made and use the bonded monies to repair, renovate and reopen the Silver Lake firehouse.
Frank Fleischman III,
Belleville
