The former fire station at the intersection of Chatham Road and Monroe Street has been vacant for nearly a year, but if things go according to plan it will soon be the headquarters for a Springfield-based property management company.
The building at 2051 W. Monroe St. had served as the Springfield Fire Department’s Station 8 since 1969 until last June when it was relocated to 600 Rickard Road as part of a larger plan that included construction of two other firehouses, Station 6 at 2121 S. 11th St. and Station 13 on Spaulding Orchard Road, just west of Route 4.
The city of Springfield issued a request for proposals for the vacant property and Rick Wiese, who co-owns Wiese Properties along with his father and brother, said he was told in mid-February that the company’s bid for $100,000 had been accepted. An ordinance authorizing the sale of the property is on the March 11 committee of the whole agenda and scheduled to be voted on at the March 18 Springfield City Council meeting.
Wiese said that what began as a family business in 2010 has expanded in the past few years to include three maintenance workers and two office staff. Wiese Properties currently operates out of a small office at 1128 S. Fifth St.
“That office has been great for us; we got a really good deal on it, but we’ve outgrown it,” said Wiese. “We also need someplace we can park vehicles and have the ability to store supplies there.”
Wiese said the company currently manages around 300 properties, but the idea is to expand the business into working with homebuyers and sellers as well.
“The overall goal is not just to manage property but to help people make that transition from renting to homeownership,” said Wiese. “Our business is built around providing affordable housing for people, and we really want to expand and do other things. Renting isn’t for everybody, and sometimes people get a bit discouraged by the process. …we want to make (homeownership) available and transparent.”
Weise and his father, Richard Weise, are both licensed brokers with Keller Williams Capital. His brother, Nick Weise, oversees the maintenance division.
In addition, Weise has been a firefighter with Springfield Fire Department since 2012. He said that while he is based out of Station 3 on North Grand Avenue, he was asked to take pictures of the Station 8 property when the city was putting together the bid packet. Weise said after he realized the former fire station was going to be available for purchase, he researched the RFP process and “submitted a blind bid.”
Once the sale is approved by the City Council, Wiese said he plans to invest $20,000-$25,000 in renovating the building.
“We’re going to paint the front of it with our business colors, and then we plan to put a conference room in and take the kitchen out,” he said.
“We like the idea of having a place with a bit more exposure,” Wiese said. “We really want to expand and do some other things that will help people build a path to homeownership.”
