For $1, Greenwich Township is to sign over three acres to the volunteer fire company.
With one dollar, firefighters in Greenwich Township could finally be on the way to financing a new home.
"We've been trying to do this since the late '90s, early 2000s -- get a fire station built," said Joe Mecsey III, chief of the Stewartsville Volunteer Fire Co.
The fire company is to formalize a land purchase with the township committee on Thursday, when elected officials for $1 will sign over about three acres of municipal land -- the future site of a new Stewartsville fire station.
The Stewartsville Volunteer Fire Co. responds to a fire in 2014. The company's headquarters in the Greenwich Township municipal building is cramped among the other municipal departments and vehicles. "We barely have enough room for the firetrucks," said president Troy Rush. (lehighvalleylive.com file photo)"It was just time to take the next step and get the deal done," Mayor Will Spencer said. "We're moving forward, we're making progress."
The fire company, which president Troy Rush estimated has about 45 total volunteers, operates out of the municipal building. It's a tight fit with the other township departments and vehicles, both Rush and Mecsey said.
"We barely have enough room for the firetrucks," Rush said.
The new firehouse would be less than a mile away from its current spot. The idea is for a 14,000-square-foot station with room for the firehouse to grow as needed and rent out space for community events, the fire officials said.
But securing the land is just one step in a process planned to take about two years and $1 million. It will be the department's project, Mecsey said -- he estimated the volunteer group's eligibility for grants and other financial incentives will keep the cost at about a third of what the township would have paid.
The agreement has some contingencies to protect the township, the fire chief said. For example, Greenwich will retake ownership if the site is not developed in 10 years or if the department dissolves.
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The fire company knows there is a lot of work ahead, and an ever-present concern that the deal could somehow fall through like past promises, Mecsey said. But there's also an excitement that the volunteers could be on the path to a new station.
"The optimism is on the good side there," the chief said, "but we still have a long road home."
Steve Novak may be reached at snovak@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @type2supernovak. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.