Ligonier Fire Chief Jeremy Weaver works on a chain saw on a table, which is also used as a day room area with a bench providing extra seating.

LIGONIER — Ligonier/Perry Township Fire Department is working toward solving a problem — cramped quarters and no place to expand at its present location. To solve this problem the department plans to relocate and build a new station.

While construction is three, possibly four years away, officers with the department are not sitting idle. They have begun planning for what they need, want and what they might want. They have started looking at other newly built fire stations, finding out what has worked and what would have been done differently.

“At the end of the month we’re going to Wabash Township, West Lafayette area, and look at the way they did their station. With this being a one time thing, we want to get it right the first time,” said Fire Chief Jeremy Weaver.

“We’re cramped in here, there’s not a lot of room,” Weaver pointed out. But that is not the only problem. Each of the four bay doors, at the station, are 10-feet high and the length available to park a truck is limited. Today fire trucks are on a higher suspension and longer in length than when the station was built. The result is special ordering trucks, making the price tag higher and limiting the type of trucks purchased.

One such limitation, Weaver noted, is the purchase of an aerial or ladder truck for the department. They have had to rely on Kendallville or Topeka when the need arises.

This space between the turnout gear and the fire apparatus does not allow much space for firefighters to put on their gear.

One such example is its newest truck, a 2016 engine – ordered with a lower suspension, but longer than the one it replaced. “We were moving trucks around, (to see where it could be parked in the bay) measuring (for height and length),” said Weaver. The department currently has 11 trucks including a special operations trailer. Each one has a specific location so all equipment can be housed inside, except the trailer. It is parked outside.

One big hurdle has already been overcome. Property was donated to the city by the Pettit Family for a park and the fire department. This property is located at Lincolnway West and Calvin Street, just a few blocks south of the existing station.

The goal of the department is to expand its equipment, hopefully get an aerial/ladder truck of their own. But the biggest desire is a larger bay area, providing more than a few feet between the trucks. Other desires include a bigger day room, a separate room for the turnout gear, space for hose drying, space for the cascade unit (to refill air tanks), a workroom, training room, living quarters and office space.

Trucks have to be parked just right to accommodate all trucks, leaving narrow walkways.

The fire department is currently located on Third Street in the old city building, built in 1914, which for years was shared with the police department and city offices. After the police built a new building, the department expanded slightly, and when the city offices moved to the second floor of the new police building, the fire department began utilizing other areas in the building. But it still is not enough.

The one thing that is for certain is the new station will have a brick exterior and fit in with the downtown decor. “We don’t want it to stick out.”

“We did the financials and around 2020 we can start the process,” Weaver said. “We want to have all our ducks in a row before then to make a quick start of the project.” There has been good reception from the city’s board of works and council on the project.