In preparation for the winter months ahead, Hampshire has partnered with the fire department in order to place flags on the 500 fire hydrants in the village. The flags help firemen locate hydrants after a heavy snowfall.
The Hampshire Village Board unanimously approved the release of $1,000 in impact fees to pay for the flags. The fire department will also contribute $1,000.
“This is a five-year plan,” said Trustee Mike Reid. “We want to have a flag on every hydrant in Hampshire.”
Three village hydrants have been decorated by residents this year through the new “Adopt a Hydrant” program that is being run by the fire department.
“They are looking at possible changes to the program for next year,” Reid said. “There might be a contest for the best decorated hydrant.”
The Hampshire hydrants were painted to look like a firehouse dog, a Minion and a Star Wars character.
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Also at the village board meeting last week, friends and family of Officer Kevin Robert McCoy attended as McCoy was sworn in as the Hampshire Police Department’s newest officer.
McCoy and his wife, Deanna, live in Elgin. Deanna said that her husband, who has served as a community service officer in Bloomingdale, will be going to the University of Illinois Police Training Institute, Champaign, for three months before joining the Hampshire force.
Denise Moran is a freelance reporter for The Courier-News.