Winfield council adds firefighter positions, approves vehicle loan bid search

WINFIELD — The Winfield City Council voted to add two new firefighter positions and allow the fire department to seek bids for a loan to purchase a new side-by-side utility vehicle during its meeting on Wednesday, Oct. 8.
Fire chief Blake Farley told the council that after Judd Tucker’s hire to the fire department as a firefighter (not as chief) ended up not working out, the department needed to fill that position. Farley also requested the addition of two more firefighter positions.
Farley said having more firefighters will help alleviate mileage being put on the pump truck and help alleviate overtime.
Farley explained with a limited number of firefighters, those who are on duty take the truck wherever they go to save time by having the truck already with them when calls come in.
Having more firefighters would allow the department to use the smaller pickup truck on calls that don’t require the pump truck to respond. The council approved adding the two new positions.
The council also voted to allow Farley to start taking bids for a loan to purchase a new side-by-side utility vehicle for the fire department. The fire department currently has access to some that are owned by the county, and are shared between multiple agencies.
Farley spoke to the council to request one specifically for his department to make sure the department had one of its own so it would always be readily accessible for emergencies and events like Mule Day.
Farley said the department would fund the loan payments with income they took in from sales and property taxes to help take strain off the general budget.
The council approved and voted to allow him to start seeking bids.
The council then discussed a nuisance issue involving a certain property, but tabled the issue after Mayor Randy Price offered to reach out to the property owner to offer possible assistance in light of possible hardships the owner was facing.
The council discussed ongoing plans for paving roads in town, such as Thorndale Road and Kirkwood Street.
The council also addressed a petition requesting that speed bumps be installed on Red Oak Drive, which runs from State Highway 253 to Meadowlark Road.
Many drivers in Winfield use the small, residential road to bypass the downtown red light and other busy areas of town.
Price said he would reach out to companies doing the paving if they could add in speed tables or some other form of speed breakers at the same time they start paving roads.