NORTH WEBSTER — Following up on the news the North Webster Town Council had voted down the proposed North Webster-Tippecanoe Township Fire Territory at a special meeting Monday, Jan. 27, questions were sent out to the three council members for some input into the decision. David Walizchek and Lisa Strombeck responded. No answer had been received from Dan Thystrup.

In the meantime another meeting has been scheduled between the North Webster Town Council and Tippecanoe Township Trustee and Fire Chief Jeremy Likens for 5 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 5, at the North Webster Town Hall Annex, north of North Webster Town Hall, 144 S. Main St.

Asked why they voted against the fire territory with the township, Waliczek replied, “Please understand that we did not vote against the idea of a fire territory. There is just not enough information to vote yes. We have stated many times that we have not been given enough information on the justification for this project. We have asked for this data but as of this date, we have not received it.

“The only information that we have received is how the project would be implemented, the anticipated cost and a few personal accounts. Some of the questions I presented to the group this week were questions like: what data do you have showing the current services are not adequate?… How many missed calls have there been? … How many times have other areas needed to be called because we had no one available? … What is the average response rate now? What is the anticipated response rate after changes? These questions and more were presented to the group in writing.

“We support our local fire and EMS personnel. They are vital to our community and I know they have our community’s best interests at heart. I highly respect what they do and how they serve our community. The fact is that the town board must be a good fiduciary of the town’s funds. I don’t think any of the community would want us to place a higher tax burden on them without having the data to justify doing so.”

He also said he did not believe local taxes were out of line but tax dollars should be spent wisely. He would like to keep fire and EMS service local.

Strombeck explained her vote of abstention was because she is the mother of Tippecanoe Township Trustee Chris Francis and is seeking to avoid a conflict of interest.

The meeting should shed more light on the topic.