By Kevin Greer
Lakeside Communications Manager
When it was announced the Danbury Township Fire Department would move to a bigger and brand-new facility near Dollar General on Route 163, it was not only great for the peninsula, but it also became an opportunity for Lakeside.
The former fire station neighbors Lakeside’s Maintenance Building, so community members, including some of the Board of Directors, investigated the possibility of purchasing what would eventually become a vacant structure. In October, papers were signed, and the fire station became part of Lakeside for $284,000.
“The fire station was on the radar for the Board for many years,” said Lakeside’s Chief Operating Officer Charles Allen. “When I first came on as the COO, one of my tasks was to see if we could get that into a purchasing agreement that works for us. We did our due diligence.” Special thanks to Jim Switzer and Don Leach for their work on this effort.
While many ideas were tossed around for what to do with the building, it will become the new home for the Lakeside Grounds Team. There will be offices for Kyle Bueter, who will take over as Director of Horticulture when Loretta Wilken retires in January, and Lakeside’s Head of Security Joan Boose, in addition to cubicles for Bueter’s crew. A break room will be added for the Grounds, Maintenance and Security Teams.
There will be plenty of storage for the Grounds Team to move its equipment from the Maintenance Building and possibly add more storage in the future. At least 10 parking spaces will be available for Lakeside employees to make more room in the South Lot for Lakeside guests.
“One of the things I’m excited about is that it will free some space in the Maintenance Building,” Allen said. “This opens up a lot of possibilities for us and there won’t be as much overcrowded space in the Maintenance Building.”
