Officials have approved an agreement with an architectural consulting services firm to present a plan for possible renovations to a fire station, reports TribLive.com.

The plan is expected to help officials budget for the project and explore updates and physical changes of the building, general code requirements and will consider handicapped accessibility. The look and feel is expected to provide a template for future fire stations.

This project is slated to cost $15,000 and will take between eight and 12 weeks to complete.

Weymouth is reopening a fire station that has been closed since 2008, reports The Boston Globe.

The fire station had been closed due to budget constraints during the prior mayoral administration. The current mayor had promised to re-open the fire station which serves a community of 58,000. Fire officials said this will provide more safety with reduced response times and improve firefighter safety by having more firefighters at the scene of fires or other emergencies.

The fire station is expected to be operational no later than October.

New Haven Adams Township (IN) Fire/EMS officials recently cut the ribbon to celebrate the department’s new 2,684-square-foot addition at the corner of Hartzell Road and Indiana 930, reports fwbusiness.com.

The one-story, $914,383.45 structure has a generator that serves the entire station. And the expansion aims to allow for increased collaboration with other agencies.

Design work on the addition was done by RQAW Architects, while the contractor was Lawrence Building Corp. of Fishers.

In addition to having already utilized the drive-through bay as a vaccination site, it can act as a multi-purpose room which can serve as shelter in emergencies. Officials say that a second vaccination clinic is scheduled for Aug. 12, 13, and 14 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Appointments can be made at ourshot.in.gov.

A man was arrested after he stole an ambulance from Tri-County Ambulance Service and EMS at a gas station in Valparaiso (IN) and then abandoned the apparatus at a Portage Walmart, reports nwitimes.com.

On Tuesday the man hopped into an ambulance that was at the Family Express at U.S. 6 and Ind. 149. He then took off in the emergency vehicle and headed west on U.S. 6 and drove it to the area of the Walmart parking lot at 6807 U.S. 6, the report says.

The ambulance was abandoned in the lot, and the suspect was arrested without incident, officials say. Police officials add that he was booked into Porter County Jail, where criminal charges are pending. 

The ambulance was recovered safely by authorities, and there were no injuries reported. The circumstances of the theft, as well as the suspect’s motives, are under investigation.

On the heels of Middletown (OH) city council unanimously voting to place a 1-mill property tax—which would fund the building of four fire stations—on the ballot next spring, city and fire officials and a campaign committee aim to convince residents the tax is necessary, reports journal-news.com.

Earlier: Middletown (OH) Considers Building Four Fire Stations

The total cost of the four facilities—which would replace the outdated current stations—is estimated at $16.6 million, officials say.

If Middletown residents reject the levy, the report says, the city could place an income tax increase that would require a 1/8th of 1% increase for at least 15 years; cut the general fund budget by more than $800,000 a year by reducing the number of public safety employees; build one station every five or six years that would about double the final cumulative tally of costs; or don’t replace the stations.

Proposed Stations:

• New headquarters replacing the 1.38-acre site on Roosevelt Boulevard: A 3.6-acre site at Yankee Road and Cherry Street owned by the city as acquired from the Middletown City Schools and former site of Garfield school. 24,300 square feet, $7,168,500.
• Station 81 replacing 0.28-acre site on Clinton Street: A 2.85-acre site at Henry Avenue and Charles Street owned by the city as acquired from the Middletown City Schools and former site of the Jefferson school. 10,200 square feet, $3,009,000
• Station 85 replacing 0.86-acre site at Central Avenue and Breiel Boulevard: A 2-acre parcel at Sophie Avenue and Stolz Drive encompassing the undeveloped, southern portion of Dowling Park owned by the city. 10,200 square feet, $3,009,000.
• Station 82 replacing 0.88-acre site on Dixie Highway: A 2.7-acre site at Ohio 122 and Atrium Boulevard acquired from Premier Health/Atrium Medical Center. 11,800 square feet, $3,481,000.