The new truck replaces a 1990 Grumman aerial ladder truck, nicknamed “Big John,” after 26 years of service.

Big John was named for former DeKalb Fire Department Capt. John Isom, who was influential in the design of the truck.

He died from a fire service-related illness before the truck was put into service, according to a news release from the fire department. The city bought Big John, a 102-foot ladder truck, for $473,000 in 1990, according to Daily Chronicle reports from the time.

The online petition is addressed to South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg, the city council, parks director and fire chief.

For more than 10 years, the city has scouted locations for building a new fire station No. 9. The current station was constructed in the 1920s and is outdated.

The park is considered a good site for the station because it's centrally located in the fire district and close to another park that has a boat launch for water rescues. The district includes the Indiana University South Bend campus.

Some firefighters said they’ve needed to take allergy medicine on the job to just to work. Union president Clint East said the city didn’t fix the problem so he reminded them again in March.

When nothing was solved by April, he said that’s when the formal complaint was written.

The city tested the building for mold on Friday. East said they found above average levels in the kitchen, office space, conference room, weight room and bedrooms.