The Wabash Township advisory board meets Tuesday night as uncertainty engulfs the fire department.
The meeting comes on the heels of a virtual town hall hosted by Trustee Jennifer Teising. She's been at odds for months with township board members about the long-term future of the fire department.
But they seem one step closer to restoring the township's paid fire crew.
"Our understanding is she's starting to come on board when it comes to that idea," Board President Angel Valentín says of an unconventional solution to save the department. "We've been talking about it since June. It hasn't happened."
He's talking about efforts to negotiate a contract between the township and its firefighters, wresting some control from Teising.
"We would be placing the authority in the hands of the department and I think that they'll be more of a rational actor, to say the least, and I think that means we'll be able to get the paid guys back," he says.