City considers fire station sites
By Joey Berlin
Originally published 01:50 p.m., December 13, 2007
Updated 01:50 p.m., December 13, 2007
Fire Chief Jack Taylor is more than happy with the location of Fire Station No. 2. The problem is the building itself.
Station No. 2 is outdated and settling unevenly, and there are large cracks in the walls and floors. Mold is a problem is the building. So is space.
“The concrete moves on the outside of the building, and the roof leaks,” Taylor said, “because part of the building is pulling away from the rest of the building, and we have that repaired on regular basis.”
So the city must decide whether to rebuild station No. 2 on its existing site or at a new site.
At Wednesday’s city commission work session, Taylor laid out the pros and cons of two potential new sites for a new Fire Station No. 2: the Public Works site, or a location west of Dryer Park.
City Manager Matt Zimmerman said neither site was optimal, but they were the best locations available on the west side other than the existing site.
“Obviously, if we had to decide to rebuild the station on the existing site, then location isn’t an issue,” Zimmerman said. “But what we’re trying to do is say, let’s look at some alternate locations, since ... that’s a good site, but it’s also prime for some other uses. Let’s take a look at some other sites, see if it has a comfort level with other potential sites on the west side.”
The National Fire Protection Association produces national consensus standards for fire response times. Taylor told the commission that 90 percent of the time, by NFPA recommendations, a fire crew should have a four-minute response time, covering the time from departure at the station until arrival. A full-arm assignment should have a response time of eight minutes according to the NFPA, Taylor said.
“Depending on the availability of intersecting streets — which, the west side of town presents some challenges there because of large properties without intersecting streets,” Taylor said after his presentation, “location of the station can be important with response times, because it takes more road miles to get to another location than maybe it does at the present station location.”
Those challenges mean that both proposed sites present coverage problems for the fire department.
The site west of Dryer Park would give station No. 2 a bigger coverage area, Taylor told the commission, but it would also keep it from covering a large portion of the central and southwest parts of the city. Taylor said moving the station to the site west of Dryer Park “would certainly be a detriment” to the fire department’s ratings “because we’re improving some residential coverage, but we’re leaving more business and industrial uncovered.”
Moving to the Public Works site, Taylor said, would result in a situation similar to having station No. 2 at its current location, “but there’s a little bit of area in the central and north central that’s less coverage than we have today” because of the amount of road miles that must be traveled.
Taylor made it clear that he would prefer that station No. 2 stay where it is.
“Where we’re located today is really our best overall location,” he said.
In another discussion, the commission reviewed proposed zoning regulations to permit shooting ranges in industrial areas, in light of a proposal by Larry Lewis to construct a shooting range on the west side of town.
The draft ordinance regulations state that shooting ranges would not be permitted within a quarter-mile of residential or government structures. But Commissioner Jeff Longbine expressed concern that the proposed regulations don’t stipulate that shooting ranges must be a certain distance away from commercial areas. Longbine said he wouldn’t want a shooting range within striking distance of a shopping center, for example.
“If there’s no residential or no government around, I don’t know how we would prevent it,” Longbine said.
Zimmerman said putting in a commercial-area distance regulation would make it “almost impossible” to have a shooting range anywhere.
If the draft regulations are approved, a public hearing would be required to amend the zoning ordinance.
In other activity Wednesday, the commission:
• Conducted an action meeting in which it approved six measures related to the construction of the REG Emporia, LLC, biodiesel plant and the transfer of land from REG to Hill’s Pet Nutrition for construction of a Hill’s plant. Included were amendments to the city’s incentive compliance agreements with both REG and Hill’s. The construction deadline for REG’s biodiesel plant was pushed back five months, from March 31, 2009, to Aug. 31, 2009.
• Reviewed an ordinance modifying city pole sign regulations. Commissioners paid particular attention to the regulations for big-box retailers, which would be allowed only one pole sign.
• Reviewed the second draft of the city’s debt management policy. Larry Bucklinger walked the commission through marked changes in the 10-page policy document.
• Discussed how to use proceeds from the sale of Lake Kahola and its environs. About $1.6 million is in the Donor Advised Kahola Park Fund following the $1.75 million sale. The commission intends to use money from the fund to finance improvements to the city’s public park system.
• Cancelled its work session for Dec. 26 because Zimmerman and other staff had holiday conflicts.
hickory (anonymous) says...
Can't the new station be built west of the existing structure. Build what they can get by with and then tear down the old station and finish the rest of it. Also, why does the commission almost always insist on the low bid for construction? Look how long the civic building has been there (67 years). Build something that will last more than 20 years and you'll save money in the long run. Look at the dog kennel.....it's already got problems with the concrete work and the walls. Spend some extra money and get it done right the first time.
December 13, 2007 at 5:21 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
neighbor (anonymous) says...
I'd suggest putting it on Southside of the $5000/acre pool property the City already owns if they really must have a new building(which I strongly doubt they really need). I've heard the lobbying claims that they need access to main roads, might need a third station out along the Americus Road etc. This suggestion would only move the station a short distance from the current one not changing the insurance ratings they also mentioned, would be close to the Westside of town still, be close to the High School and Middle School, would be close to the Pool where they could get some training use of it, and it would be real close to the Americus Road development that is being brought in under the radar piecemeal.
December 13, 2007 at 6:54 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
emporian (anonymous) says...
Cant go much further west or businesses and resdents will suffer due to the increased insurance rates. The max that we can move west is the Public works area. A third station will need to eventually be built it the city continues west, but the present station cant be pushed further west due to the lack of protection then covering the center of the city.
December 13, 2007 at 7:50 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
emporian (anonymous) says...
Also, the current station wasnt even designed by someone who builds fire stations. Our living quarters/office wasn't connected to the bays correctly, so everytime it rains we have to put trashcans in the ceiling to catch water, and smaller containers spread throught the building to save equipment. When you pull the engine in and out you can watch the concrete go down. Some areas on the front slab shoot up mud when the truck passes over them. Several holes get bigger everytime the truck passes over them. The area where the ladder truck sits is actually hollow under the floor with little holding it up.
December 13, 2007 at 7:58 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
admireed (anonymous) says...
Who designed and built this station?
December 13, 2007 at 9:51 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
ks_farmboy (anonymous) says...
i for one am glad that the city commission is looking at alternatives for a location, rather than rushing in and building right where it is at, then in 5 years saying that they should move it. take your time, get some quality work done, and it will be there for years to come.
December 14, 2007 at 12:07 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )