CLEARFIELD – Clearfield Borough Council did not act on a request from Clearfield Borough Fire Department’s deputy chief Thursday night.
Brett Owens addressed council as the head of the department’s building committee, asking that the borough hold off on any decision to sell the fire halls at wards two and four.
Owens said he would like to see an out-of-town engineer come in to assess whether it would be feasible to build on at the First Ward hall rather than construct a new station. He added that if it was an option, the police station could be moved to the current Third Ward fire hall.
Clearfield Borough Police Chief Jeff Rhone said moving to the fire hall is not a good option because of space constraints.
“Every office is being used in the station now, and Third Ward is smaller.”
Still, Owens asked that council wait about six months before making a decision to sell the two halls because if it is determined that the First Ward hall can be expanded, Second Ward and Fourth Ward would be needed to store fire trucks.
“We feel, right now, that’s the cheapest route we can go,” Owens said of expanding the First Ward fire hall.
“We’re talking about the future of your company,” responded Second Ward Councilman John Naddeo, adding that the least expensive option might not be the best one.
Owens said the company needs to move to a more central location due to recommendations from several official agencies.
Owens added that the former Moose lot might not be the best of options because the land is in the flood plain, requiring additional code requirements.
Clearfield Borough Council President Jim Leitzinger said the council preferred to wait until a financial study was completed before deciding what to do with regard to constructing a new hall.
“Then maybe we can see where we’ll be three, five, 10 years from now.”
Leitzinger said it is the intent of council to place the money raised from selling the Second and Fourth ward fire halls into a capital fund for a new fire department or a new police department.