Volunteer Firefighters

The first full-time firefighters in the Morton Fire Department's nearly 150-year history have a five-year contract with the village after their union ratified the agreement last week.

The Village of Peoria Heights will enter a working agreement with the Peoria Fire Department to assist with emergency calls. The plan passed narrowly during Tuesday’s three-hour meeting that also saw trustees override the mayor’s veto of an ordinance to establish a 1% grocery tax.

Full-time firefighters are on staff for the first time in the Morton Fire Department’s almost 150 year history.

The Peoria Heights Board of Trustees is pumping the brakes on a plan to turn the fully volunteer fire department into a “hybrid” department with a handful of full-time employees.

Nearly a year after Peoria Heights originally approved a plan to hire full-time firefighters, projected budget deficits have some village board members questioning the move.

The Village of Peoria Heights is navigating a new effort to fund their fire department amid a potential budget shortfall.

West Peoria voters have a pair of referendums to consider this March.

In a unanimous vote, the board confirmed Dan Decker to the position.

Peoria Heights Mayor Mike Phelan had hoped to appoint a new fire chief during Tuesday night’s village board meeting, but that process is now on hold.

The Village of Peoria Heights is in a period of uncertainty, as a divided village board charts the path forward for the village’s volunteer fire department.