"It really has been worth its weight in gold," he said, adding that is saying something since the truck weighs several tonnes.

Since the department officially took delivery of the truck in September, Whittaker said it has been used in a number of situations people wouldn't normally associate it with -- from structure fires to accidents. When the councils, through the fire services committee, first started to consider replacing the ladder truck they decommissioned about five years ago, they were concerned about committing such a large amount of funds to a piece of equipment that would be used only sporadically.

Besides giving crews the ability to gain access to the taller structures such as Klondike Place, the elevators and a number of apartment buildings in town, the aerial truck has a number of built-in capabilities, which will make firefighters more effective and keep them safer on the job. Attached to the 105-foot ladder, is a basket with a 1,000-pound capacity, which gives firefighters a working platform to work from, in large part because they can access water and air from the basket.

The basket also has connections for power and hoses and it actually has its own nozzle that sprays 1,500 gallons of water per minute.

In addition, T6 holds 500 gallons of water and has a 100-gallon tank of special encapsulating foam, which is particularly useful in battling house, or petroleum fires. Another benefit of the aerial truck is the added capability in combating fires in large buildings that are not necessarily tall, but long and wide. "Anything that has a large surface area, such as our grocery stores, downtown building blocks and our schools, if there is a fire, we would call out the ladder truck," he said, adding many rural buildings fall into the same category. Because currently T6 is the only aerial truck in the region the BFD expects other fire departments to request it as part of their mutual-aid agreements.

Last year, City Council voted 6-1 to approve a fire substation in a private home at 425 E. Lake Ave. for a trial period of one year. Unfortunately, a plumbing issue flooded the house and the substation was never used.

As a result, city staff proposed four locations for a new substation Tuesday night: the former site of Watsonville Farm Supply, Franich Park, Fowle Reservoir and Joyce Street Park.

Watsonville Fire Chief Pablo Baretto, Mayor Felipe Hernandez and City Councilmembers Jimmy Dutra and Rebecca Garcia voiced support for the two-parcel Watsonville Farm Supply site located on E. Lake Ave. However, this option is the most expensive — an estimated $2.1 million — due to its location on a main thoroughfare.

Of the four proposals, city staff recommended Franich Park, which is located at the corner of Menasco Drive and Vista Montana Drive next to Ann Soldo Elementary School. The Franich Park site is attractive because it could be a long-term permanent solution and is the cheapest with an estimate cost of $750,000 to $1.2 million as it uses city property.

Drawbacks to Franich Park include the fact that the site would require community outreach. Dutra said residents of the Franich Park neighborhood and parents of students at Ann Soldo Elementary would oppose the substation. City Councilmember Karina Cervantez Alejo said she did not want the city to use designated open space for the substation. In addition, she questioned the accuracy of the cost estimates provided in the staff report.

The new facility will expand ESD 1's ability to respond to fires in Annetta, Annetta South and the greater Aledo area, ESD 1 Fire Chief Stephen Watson said.

"[This] will also improve response capacity in the greater Aledo/Annetta area by having a station south of the railroad tracks, and an additional staffed engine company in the region," he said.

The station, expected to be complete by mid-summer 2017, will also allow the Insurance Services Office to extend the current Public Protection Class rating to a five-mile distance from the facility.

The facility will be staffed by two personnel at all times, with assistance from Aledo Volunteer Fire Department members, Watson said.

An engine, 3,000 gallon tanker and brush truck will also be housed at the station.

Plans for the new station were initiated in the summer of 2014, when ESD 1 representatives asked the Annetta South City Council to change the zoning for four acres of land located at the corner of Farm-to-Market 5 and Thunderhead Lane to accommodate the facility.

"Having that station staffed will affect the protection of the City of Aledo," Watson said, as reported by the Weatherford Democrat in 2014. "And at that point, the ISO score would be extended to folks within five miles of the station.

Mold was discovered in the station in March after firefighters complained about a bad smell. Plastic barriers were installed and a filtration system was moved into the space. Crews headed to temporary quarters -- first to the Oddfellows Hall on the same lot and then to a temporary trailer also on site. Apparatus remains parked in the station with the doors open.

Discussion about a permanent solution to the moldy situation began at the Nov. 17 Fire Board meeting when EDH Fire Chief Dave Roberts asked the board to declare an emergency and authorize a contract with West Coast Restoration to complete the job the company started nearly nine months earlier and upgrade station amenities to include an adequate kitchen, sleeping quarters and climate control units. "It's been long enough," Roberts said. "Each month it gets worse and worse."

Noting that winter weather could only add to the problem, EDH deputy fire Chief Tom Keating pointed out, "We still have a building that's half tore up. The mold will continue to grow."

But directors weren't convinced the option before them is the best course of action.

"I'm not a fan of the plan," Director Jim Hartley said, explaining that he worries that once crews tear into the building repair costs would grow. He argued that the $200,000 could be better spent as seed money toward a permanent, fire department-owned facility "that could be much more adequate." The El Dorado Hills Fire Department currently leases the Station 91 space for $1 a year.