The Greenville Pioneer reports that the first of three public hearings considering a $5.4 million new station for the Greenville Volunteer Fire Company will be held at 7 p.m. Jan. 28 at the current Greenville Firehouse. Additional meetings about the proposed 15,907-square-foot building that would be put on 14 acres on State Route 81 near County Route 41 will be held Feb. 8 and March 15. Fire commissioners say the current building, from the 1930s, used to be an outdoor equipment dealership, and is not large enough in many ways, and not compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act. There will be a March 24 town referendum on the project, which would take out a 30-year bond with 3.75 percent interest. That means an average resident with an assessment of $125,000 would have a $102.50 tax bill increase. Greenville commissioners went against the advice of their attorney and voted to allow absentee ballots in the referendum, as commissioner Eric Bear said some taxpayers are "snowbirds" who won't return from the south before March 24. See the full story in the Greenville Pioneer.