RUMFORD – The fire department is searching for a winter home for its new ladder truck.

Getting the necessary approvals and amending an agreement the town has with owners of the municipal parking lot to place a temporary building for the ladder truck there took longer than expected.

Chief John Woulfe said plans are to build the temporary building as early in the spring as possible. The department set aside $20,000 for construction of the building in the municipal lot at the rear of the Congress Street fire station. The lot is owned by MeadWestvaco and is leased to the town for a token amount. Most of the labor for building the structure will be volunteered by fire department members during their off time.

The 1990 ladder truck replaces a 1970s model that did not pass inspection. Rumford’s fire department has an agreement with Mexico’s for use of its ladder truck should an emergency arise in Rumford.

Woulfe said he has phone calls out looking for a space to store the truck over the winter. Selectmen are expected to act on the proposed site at their Dec. 18 board meeting. Now, the ladder truck is parked next to the fire station. He said further training on the truck’s use by firefighters will continue, as will other preparatory work on the ladder truck to get it ready to go into service during the next few months.

The delay in constructing the temporary building has also caused a delay in holding public informational meetings to acquaint the public with the reasons a new fire station is needed. Woulfe had hoped to hold those meetings during this fall, followed by a special town meeting to raise funds for building a station.

As it stands now, the public informational sessions will be held in the spring once the ladder truck is in service. Because of the larger sizes of newer ladder trucks and other firefighting equipment, the 1925 fire station cannot accommodate them. Voters will decide whether to approve construction of a new station at the annual town meeting on June 7.

A concept plan for a new station, unveiled a couple of mouths ago, shows a two-story structure that could be built on municipal property off Rumford Avenue near the Androscoggin River. The estimated cost for a new station is $2.3 million.

Woulfe said the fire department and other town officials are looking into grant possibilities to help pay for at least a part of the construction costs.

eadams@sunjournal.com

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