Belgium Fire Dept. to buy new truck

The village and town of Belgium jointly approved contributing most of the funds to buy a new grass fire truck for the Belgium Fire Department on Monday.

The department will buy a pickup truck from Ewald Automotive Group for $33,419 and add $55,845 of equipment for a total of $89,264.

The truck was estimated to cost $75,000, but equipment came in higher than expected, Fire Chief Dan Birenbaum said.

“We were shocked,” he said.

Among the equipment is a high-pressure pump that uses less water than the department’s current pump.

The village and town agreed to pay $75,000, with the village paying $31,695 (43.26%) and the town $43,405 (57.74%). The breakdown is based on equalized property value.

Town Chairman Tom Winker said residents will have to approve its portion of the funding.

“The town is going to struggle because we’re going to have to go in front of the taxpayers and increase the levy,” he said.

The Fire Department will pick up the rest of the cost. Some of that $14,000 will come from selling a 1993 fire truck with 15,000 miles that the new one will replace.

The truck will respond to all calls and will be able to reach farmers’ fields that larger trucks cannot, Birenbaum said.