CENTER TWP — The township is gearing up for a round of fire inspections for commercial properties.

Center Township supervisors voted 4-0 on Wednesday, Oct. 8, to update software and get more people trained in inspection.

“The inspection program that I want to do is going to go on throughout the year. It’s not going to do them all at once in the beginning of the year. It’s just too much,” code enforcement officer Randy Brown told supervisors before the vote.

Brown said he spoke to Gateway Engineers about adapting the current inspection mapping into their geographic information system. He said the proposed cost would be between $2,500 and $3,000 for setup, with additional costs covered under existing maintenance agreements.

“The other company, the first company I looked at, they wanted $4,500 for a setup and then $1,500 a year for the next three years. Then that $1,500 would go up over time,” he explained to council.

After that, Brown said he learned how many commercially-zoned properties are in the township, which was determined to be 354. To figure out how much would be appropriate to charge, he said he used Butler Township’s prices as a guide.

He also requested the township send three people to an inspectors course.

“I told you Monday that it was like $700,” Brown said to council. “It’s actually only $150 to $200. It’s an online course we would go through.”

Ultimately, the township said it was likely to receive a few thousand dollars in revenue while improving the safety of businesses.