During its public safety and administrative and community service (ACS) committees Thursday, aldermen voted not to close the Montclaire Fire Station, for now.
The committees’ caveat to the station’s reprieve is that if or when Montclaire needs a moderate-to-major repair or upgrade, the council will stop sinking capital expenses into it.
“I believe the growth of our community and shifting development patterns necessitate the construction of a more efficient station on the city’s eastern edge,” said Alderman Will Krause. “Since the early planning stages of the new public safety facility downtown, closure of the Montclaire Station has always been considered an inevitability.” However, Krause said his constituents and area first responders contacted him about the perceived folly of closing Montclaire before a new fire station is built and ready for use, which the committee said is two to five years away.