Leighton Township Fire Chief Matt Weston told the Township Board Thursday evening the department plans to have an open house event Oct. 7 with a specific purpose in mind.

Weston acknowledged a shortage of volunteers that plagues most other area departments and said the celebration next month will be an attempt to recruit new volunteers, particularly from the Green Lake area.

The chief said he read an article recently that asserted fire departments used to worry most about having enough water, but these days they worry about having enough personnel.

The Martin, Dorr, Wayland and Hopkins Area fire departments have been reporting similar issues in the last several years are trying to interest young men in serving their communities as volunteer firefighters.

It wasn’t all gloom and doom for the department, however, which gained the blessing of the Township Board to spend $22,700 on a new air compressor. The old unit died recently and Weston said he was told it would cost at least $4,000 to repair it, with no guarantees of success.

The new unit will be purchased Breathing Air Systems.

Weston told the board, “This is not a fun way to spend $22,000, but this is needed… Without the ability to fill the bottles, we’re out of the business of firefighting.”

He added that Leighton has been using Dorr Township’s compressor temporarily until the new unit is bought and arrives.

In other business at the meeting, the Township Board:

• Heard a plea from Green Lake area resident Bruce Bunker to resolve an issue in which he has installed a six-foot-high fence and told by Professional Code Inspections it’s in violation rules for height in the local ordinance.

Supervisor Steve Deer said he and PCI will re-examine the ordinance and see if a request for a variance can be taken up by the Zoning Board of Appeals.

• Agreed to permit deputy Supervisor Steve Wolbrink to attend a Michigan Townships Association seminar Sept. 25 on emergency services. Wolbrink said he was particularly interested because he also is a member of the ambulance service board and the fire department.
• Noted the township’s plan for roads is simply to have the paving of 144^th Avenue completed with the final cost of just over a million dollars.
• Declined to chip in additional money to buy flashing signs for East Shore Drive, West Shore Drive and 145^th Avenue in the Green Lake area.

Trustee John Hooker commented, “They (the signs) are nice, but I don’t think they control speeding very well.”

• Agreed to set the annual weed assessment rate at $75 per parcel.
• Agreed to spend $100 for installation and $7.96 per month for a light at the intersection of Patterson Avenue and Bass Road, or 135^th Avenue.