Newton Grove fire contract offered

The town of Newton Grove and its attorney, Lew Starling, have drafted a contract and submitted it the town’s Fire Department, offering a commitment of funds based on what the town can afford year to year.

This comes at the request of town fire officials who were seeking something in writing that ensures they will be taken care of by the town. For the past 20-plus years, the two entities have operated by what Mayor Craig Warren described as a “gentleman’s handshake,” and since no one from the previous boards serves now, officials felt it best to put something in writing.

Contents and specifics of the proposed contract have not been released, since the fire department just received it Monday night, said Fire Chief Daniel Warwick.

Based on the town’s proposed 2025-26 budget, $46,000 has been set aside for the fire department, one of the highest allotments among local municipalities. The fire department will hold a board meeting to decide if the terms of the contract are suitable. If they agree to those terms, the contract will go into effect July 1, hopefully preventing an insurance point increase that has been looming.

Warwick believes that something will get done. “I’m optimistic that there’ll be a resolution before July 1 between the fire department and the town. We can’t let the citizens of the town go without fire services,” he attested. “Only thing we have to do at this point [is have] the fire department board vote on it, put the signatures on it, and once it’s signed, it’s a done deal.”

Warren shared similar high hopes that something will get done, but said he didn’t want to speak too much on the matter until he hears back from the fire department board. “This is something they requested. Our attorney and former attorney looked over the contract and ensured that this was a proper contract,” Warren stated. “We’ve budgeted what we can afford to do for the year, and that’s the numbers in this contract.”

Movie Night

The town is also gearing for some big events this weekend including a resurrected “Movie In The Park” night Saturday, May 17, at 8 p.m. They have bought their own 28-foot screen and projector for the event. The movie selected will be the popular ‘90s movie, “Little Rascals.” Admission is free, and there will also be free concessions.

The following day, on May 18, 9 a.m., Hobbton High School will hold its senior parade. Principal Michael Warren took time to thank the board and all who were involved for their help in making the events possible, including getting the senior banners posted around the town. The parade will begin at Weeks Park, and will go down toward Eddie’s Cafe. The traffic circle will be shut off for the event.

Answering service

Town Clerk Amanda Baggett also wanted to encourage citizens of Newton Grove to use the town’s 24-hour answering service when it comes to reporting problems within the town.

“We get notifications directly when you use the answering service, unlike when you post it to the town’s Facebook page,” she stressed.

“It will be very helpful and more effective to report anything to the 24-hour answering service.”