Silver Lake Fire Chief John Conley presents the new fire truck to the council on Wednesday, Aug. 9. Pictured from left: Austin Rovenstine, Jean Weller, Nichole Taylor, Medard Murfin, Tonya Conley and John Conley. InkFreeNews photo by Brianna Pitts.

By Brianna Pitts
InkFreeNews

SILVER LAKE — Silver Lake Fire Chief John Conley received permission to place a potential offer on a 2005 Spartan fire truck during an Aug. 9 council meeting.

The truck is listed at $259,000. However, Conley explained he had spoken with the chief selling the truck and made him aware of Silver Lake’s $120,000 budget for the vehicle. Conley said the chief suggested they have sold trucks for less than the listed price in the past and were willing to work with them.

Conley addressed both the concerns with the truck as well as the positives. One of the concerns is its size being 36 feet long as opposed to 26 feet. This could pose challenges for navigating turns around the lake. However, the positives with it being larger allows for plenty of space for all of their equipment and more space to grow.

The town of Silver Lake would contribute $55,000 and buy the CAFS system for approximately $10,000, with the township contributing the other $65,000. A CAFS system describes a method utilized to dispense compressed air into the foam solution to suppress fires.

Once purchased, all maintenance for the fire truck would be the responsibility of the township.

The council approved Conley making an offer and is currently pending approval from the township.

In other business, Council Member Medard Murfin gave several updates on different projects the town is involved in, including updates on the parks in the area and new equipment arriving daily.

Murfin also said there are several meetings planned with different architects on Thursday, Aug. 10, to walk through the future community center building and make some decisions.

Other business discussed:

• There is a Silver Lake Days Committee meeting in attempts to get Silver Lake Days started back up. If interested, contact Sherry from Our Hometown Station coffee shop.
• Two businesses submitted façade grant applications for the council to consider. Whetstone Woodenware was approved for $30,000 for two buildings to improve windows, doors and more. The Silver Inn’s application was tabled due to the council needing more information.
• Resident Wayne Spratt brought an idea to the council of collecting leaves and turning them into fertilizer for farms.
• The council discussed and approved wage increases for town employees with many receiving a $2 per hour raise.
• A Title VI Non-Discrimination Plan and Town of Silver Lake Title VI Assurance was approved.
• The street/utilities department gave an update on big trees being taken down as well as the gazebo being repaired.