Officials have been considering a new generator for Independence Township Hall for the past 18 months, and on Nov. 18, they voted to approve the purchase.
The complete cost of the unit is $64,000, which includes installation of a gas line, as well as additional landscaping around the unit and other work.
Township Building Director Dave Belcher worked on bids and specific needs for the generator to sustain operations at the building in a power outage. Belcher recommended purchasing a natural-gas unit from Generac.
Township Treasurer Paul Brown said he explored purchasing a generator a year ago, and the quote he obtained was over $140,000. Brown credited Belcher with having skills needed to efficiently purchase the generator.
In addition to allowing the building to function in an emergency, gas and electric lines installed in the building to accomodate individual occupants will be consolidated into one line. Over $180 a month in rental fees to utility companies will be saved by consolidating lines.
Installing the generator is important to ensure township hall is up and running for township business and residents in case of an emergency like the winter storm earlier this year, which knocked out power for more than a week, said Supervisor Pat Kittle.
Emergency operations would include a warming center for residents, Kittle said.
‘We want you to be able to get a cup of coffee and recharge yourself,” he said. ‘We want to make sure the community knows services are available at Independence Township in an emergency. We also want to let other communities know Independence Township will be up and running so they too can conduct business.?
In the summer, hopes were high to receive a $150,000 grant for the generator and other improvements for an emergency operations center for the township and surrounding communities.
Independence Township Fire Department Deputy Fire Chief Mitch Petterson applied for the grant in the State of Michigan Competitive Grant Assistance Program.
The grant request was denied, however.
In July, when speaking about the grant, Petterson asked how business would be conducted if power was lost for a long period of time.
He also said the state has encouraged governments to create efficiencies and has created grants to accomplish such goals.