A brief and perhaps odd article appeared in the Southtown Star about the Homewood Acres VFD.
Homewood Acres a fire department in name only, but officials hope to change
If there’s a fire in the tiny, unincorporated community of Homewood Acres, no one counts on the Homewood Acres Volunteer Fire Department for help.
It’s been several years since the single-station company has been able to respond to a fire in the one-square-mile area nestled between Country Club Hills and Homewood. Some of its firefighters are not state-certified, the department itself lacks certification from the Illinois State Fire Marshal, and it is caught in an ugly political brawl between the department’s former and current leadership.
The article is HERE.
thanks Dennis
Previous posts about the department are HERE, HERE, HERE, HERE, and HERE.
#1 by Mike Kilburg on January 29, 2013 - 6:27 PM
Time to dispel the blatant lack of knowledge regarding consolidation of fire departments. I am the president of IAFF Local 2720 and am a member of the Associated Firefighters of Illinois Consolidation Committee. The UNION advocates consolidation of fire departments….as long as it is done correctly. There are no provisions right now in state law addressing this issue. Perfect examples are Justice and Worth. To North Palos FPD’s credit they did the right thing with Worth employees. I for one am a believer in the consolidation movement. The duplication of equipment and chiefs coupled with an utter lack of adequate staffing in Divison 24 alone is enough for me. This is going to be a “from the ground up movement” and anyone who thinks the unions are against this are incorrect.
#2 by Martin Nowak on January 4, 2013 - 6:15 PM
As for Justice, we had two departments running us. The better one was Roberts Park. Justice was so full of it and responding times sucked. Let’s not forget about a time they were stealing silver from a burning house. I believe that the village made the best choice with closing the department and shifting operations to Roberts Park. Saved the village some money.
#3 by FYI on January 4, 2013 - 11:34 AM
Same points I brought up a few months back and many disagreed. It turned into a career vs. volunteer discussion. It has nothing to do with that. They are probably good guys with the heart and ambition to restore the Department. But honestly what is the need and why? Seems like a pipe dream to me. It makes sense for another department to cover such a small area. So many other small departments have dissolved and or been annexed. Even bigger departments like Worth and Justice are gone. For whatever the reasons be it political, management, union issues or budget issues. The bottom line is that it is a tough time for departments to survive. Look at the struggles East Joliet is going through. Look at South Park and Moecherville a few years back. Two small departments that merged into one to survive. If it is tough for any of these departments to exist then how can HAVFD even have any chance for survival. I know you can try and hope for the best but sometimes the writings on the wall! Some Chiefs, mayors and unions are fearful…but unfortunately consolidation of services is happening. Little kingdoms will broken. In regards to the services fire and EMS provide…people expect the most bang for their buck!
#4 by WTF HAVFD on January 4, 2013 - 10:02 AM
Stop wasting the communitys money on your “toys”. The funds will be needed to contract out fire and ems from your neighbor. You got kicked off the state and your own MABAS District 24 for “thinking” you guys were so baaaaddd. Welcome to reality.
#5 by ffpm571 on January 3, 2013 - 6:37 PM
They will have a tough road ahead.. If the residents don’t support them and the neighboring towns won’t either, that is not a good place to be in. A small area like that doesn’t have the call volume to justify a separate fire district. As noble as it may be, the honest truth and the best thing to do is to take the income from the cell tower, get a solid contract for fire and EMS with the neighbors and call it a day.