Round Lake voters favor fire request

Voters roundly approved the Greater Round Lake Fire Protection District's request to borrow $4.5 million to fund modernization projects.

Unofficial totals Tuesday night showed more than 71 percent of the voters, 7,590, favoring the proposal, while only a little more than 28 percent, 3,015, rejected the request, which the district said will fund the expansion of fire station 1 and improvements elsewhere in the district.

Fire Chief Greg Formica said the district has outgrown its facilities. With the money they will expand and relocate the living quarters for firefighters at station 1 next to the garage where the fire trucks are now. Currently firefighters spend their time between calls on the second floor on the building and he said they waste time and risk injury having to run to their equipment when calls come in.

The Greater Round Lake Fire Protection District includes most or all of Round Lake, Round Lake Beach, Round Lake Heights and Hainesville.