Martin Township Fire & Rescue has more than just passing a Nov. 6 millage request to deal with, according to Fire Chief Earl Wykstra.

Wykstra told the Martin Township Board Wednesday evening that the department still is battling issues with the new county-wide radio pager system and insists he’s heard the same from Dorr, Leighton and Gun Plain departments.

“I feel like we have a firefighter safety issue with these new radios,” the chief said. “We’ve complained and they say they’ve been looking in to it for months, but nothing is getting done.”

Wykstra said some firefighters are not getting pages while others do.

“It isn’t as good as the old system, in my opinion,” he said.

Wykstra also distributed a flyer outlining what the three-quarter-of-a-mill request will get for the department on the general election ballot. The levy requested will raise an estimated $68,655 in the first of the four years, 2019 through 2022.

It would be used to purchase new self-contained breathing apparatus (SCUBA) at $125,000; turnout gear at $80,000, and begin saving for a new front-line fire engine at $600,000.

On a more positive note, Board Trustee John Schippers, former fire chief, reported that the department’s ISO insurance rating has improved over the past year.

In other business Wednesday night, the Township Board:

• Discussed two more options presented by The Architectural Group (TAG) for plans to expand the township hall to accommodate the crowded cleark’s and treasurer’s offices. One, estimated at $666,000 to$720,000, was to add on to the J.C. Wheeler Library across the street. The other, at $702,000 to $738,000 was for a stand-alone building.

Alice Kelsey, a Library Board member indicated she’s concerned about the proposal at the library site, fearing it would preclude any expansion of the library. She was told it was only one of three options under discussion.

• Learned from Treasurer Sue Tiemeyer that a lot of tree trimming and cleanup needs to be done for cemeteries because of the presence of mulberry trees. A letter complaining about conditions at East Martin Cemetery also was read.

• Agreed to place $250,000 from both the general fund and roads fund in certificates of deposit (CDs) at United Bank.

• Approved payment of $113 each for Tiemeyer and her deputy to attend a conference next month.

COVER PHOTO: Though it’s an upgrade for sewer lines for the Village of Martin, machines and construction tools were very visible Wednesday evening in front of the Martin Township Hall along 10th Street near Templeton.