When Whitefield voters elected to create a municipal fire department at the 2010 town meeting, three private fire companies were replaced with a single town-wide force.
The North Whitefield Fire Dept. went out of business. The Kings Mills and Coopers Mills fire departments continue, but the town is in the process of taking ownership of their buildings and equipment.
The Whitefield Board of Selectmen signed a lease on the Kings Mills station at their Aug. 8 meeting. The Coopers Mills Fire Dept. is in the process of signing their station over to the town.
The town already owned the Kings Mills fire truck, said Frank Ober, vice chairman of the Whitefield Board of Selectmen in a telephone interview on Aug. 9. They will house that truck at the building they are now leasing at the end of Town House Road.
The town will pay for maintenance and insurance on the building, but are not being charged a significant amount, perhaps no more than $1, for the lease, Ober said.
The future of the Kings Mills and Coopers Mill fire departments is still uncertain, Ober said.
“We’re hoping that these organizations will continue to be fundraising organizations for the town fire department,” Ober said.
