EAST SPENCER — The East Spencer Town Council chose to move forward with a $5 million loan from the United States Department of Agriculture to help fund a new fire station during the Nov. 13 meeting.

East Spencer representatives initially requested $14.5 million from the state legislator to construct a new municipal complex to house police, fire, and administration, but only received $2 million. Town Manager Michael Douglas said that they then contacted the USDA to see if its Community Facilities Direct Loan and Grant Program could assist in funding a new fire station.

East Spencer Fire Department currently operates out of two fire stations that are located right next door to town hall. The buildings’ conditions make it unsuitable for firefighters to sleep there overnight where flooding occurs when it rains and the fire trucks have “outgrown” the station. Fire Chief Shawn McBride emphasized that firefighters need to stay there at night to handle any potential fires.

Before East Spencer can officially apply for the loan, there will be a public hearing next month to notify residents on how council decided to proceed. A resolution formally needs to be adopted first and council has to agree to the terms of the contract before Dec. 31.

Regarding the loan, Douglas advised the current interest rates are at 3.5 percent for a 30-year loan. On Dec. 31, USDA interest rates will increase and East Spencer will not be able to borrow as much as they could before that date.

“The higher the interest rate, the larger the loan payment, the less money you want to borrow,” Douglas said.

Douglas mentioned taxes, sales taxes, new industries, and new homes as the main revenue streams East Spencer would be getting over the next several years to aid in paying off the loan. 

Douglas will immediately inform USDA and the Local Government Commission about East Spencer’s decision to carry on with the loan. There was also talks of a potential merger between the Spencer and East Spencer Fire Departments “due to a lack of personnel” according to Douglas. Both departments are having trouble hiring and retaining employees. The merger is only in the early stages and Douglas will let Spencer know they are going ahead with the fire station and see what they want to do.

“There’s a lot of history in our fire department in East Spencer. So the question is, do you want to give that up? Does Spencer want to give up their fire house and their history to come to East Spencer? That’s a lot of discussions, the details between the fire chiefs and the managers as far as how that’s going to work,” Douglas said.

After council made their commitment to the station, McBride will be looking to attract more volunteers and part-time employees for the department. When it comes to the merger, he believes both towns want their own, separate fire departments and that they still need to have more meetings with Spencer before coming up with a solution. In the meantime, McBride is grateful that East Spencer voted to approve a new fire station.

“We’re super excited about that, the new fire station,” McBride said. “Now with the growth that’s coming, I think it’s really going to benefit the town, really benefit the community. Compared to the facility we have now to the new fire station, I think this is a blessing in disguise that the town is going to do this for the citizens and the fire department in general.”

*New information has been added to this article.