The contract officially began on Tuesday, according to the Daily Times Chronicle, and Castagna has 14 months to complete the project. The new, 15,000-square-foot fire station will have three bays and be built on the existing on the same site as the existing station. The current station was built in 1971; the contractor that one the bid to demolish it is in the process of applying for a demolition permit.  

Replacing the station has been an issue for several years in Burlington. Two years ago Town Meeting approved the plan to build a new station.

Interim Fire Chief Sebon Burns said these trucks would be made to the department's specification. He said the lifespan for fire trucks is around 10 to 15 years, and some of theirs have now met that.  

Manhattan Fire Captain David Graham said the truck is need to keep up with the growing airport needs.  

"In order to provide the coverage we need for our current index level we are running into some issues with some older equipment," explained Graham. "I believe our back up truck right now was from 1979 and it does not have that cling agent that is required by the FAA for certain index levels.”

Firefighters are training to become familiar with the truck by conducting hours of training.

The City Council voted 12-0 to withdraw $500,000 from the city's stabilization, or savings account, to buy the new pumper truck. It will replace a truck that is 16 years old.  

"This purchase will put the fire department in a very solid position in terms of our ability to respond with reliable apparatus when needed," Fire Chief Dean Desmarais said.  

He urged the City Council to approve the purchase as soon as possible since the price of the new truck increased by $13,908 in early February. Desmarais said he had negotiated a deal with the vendor to extend the original price of $488,823 but only if they acted within a week.