Marion hires new fire chief
Staff writer
Andre Ebaben, a Marion resident who works full time for the Fort Riley fire department, was named Marion fire chief Monday.
Ebaben has worked as a firefighter 26 years, 24 of them full time.
His first experience fighting fires was as a volunteer firefighter at Lincolnville.
“I graduated from Centre and lived in Lincolnville and worked with Lincolnville fire,” he said.
He also used to work for Marion County road and bridge department.
His biggest challenge will be to bring department members together as a family, he said Tuesday.
At Fort Riley he works two days on and two days off, followed by a four day break.
He’s already familiar with most of Marion firefighters.
“I’m excited to fill the position,” he said.
Ebaben’s wife owns Signature Salon on Main St.
He replaces Chris Killough, who resigned in September and was temporarily succeeded by Mark Slater.
In other business Monday, economic development director Megan Jones showed council members a survey she wants to launch after Christmas.
The survey asks for opinions on the city’s economic strengths and challenges, new opportunities the city should prioritize, threats or risks, the biggest opportunity for economic growth, and how residents rate Marion’s current economic landscape.
Council members also discussed a proposal from APAC construction to patch Vine and Santa Fe Sts. for $18,847.
Council member Zach Collett argued against “skin patching” Santa Fe St. because of the condition of the street.
“I don’t want to spend money on it to have it fall apart,” Collett said.
Council members voted to have work done only on Vine at a cost of $11,499.13.
The council approved purchase of four bullet-proof vests for the police department at a cost of $4.664.
“I’ve known for the last year that mine was outdated,” Police Chief Aaron Slater told council members.
Council members also approved purchase of a $5,521.07 fan for firefighters to use to clear smoke from buildings.
Other expenses approved by council members include $2,753.27 for electric solar meters to be used with a solar power project at Carlson’s Grocery.