Post by cooter on Aug 10, 2007 18:26:25 GMT -5
After over a year of sharing quarters with City of Batavia Public Works as station #1 and renting a warehouse for station #2.... they're almost home in their brand new stations. Read article for more details!
Trust me all these stations are FRIGGIN HUGE!!!
By Michele du Vair special to the beacon news
BATAVIA -- Look past the mobiles, the mounds of dirt and the portable potties, and Batavia's east side fire station expansion and renovation project is looking pretty fabulous.
At least that's the consensus of city officials gathered Thursday night for the 75 percent completion tour.
"The project is on time and on schedule," said Chris Hansen, architect for Kluber, Skahan and Associates whose firm designed the station. "It's progressing very well."
Features of the renovated fire station include the addition of an extra bay and the expansion of the existing three bays, as well as a mezzanine for dry storage, a board room off the handicapped-accessible main lobby, a command center and tons more living and storage space.
Indeed, the soon-to-be completed, 26,014-square-foor fire station roughly will triple its previous size, according to Batavia Fire Chief Bill Darin.
"It's been a long time coming, and the fire department personnel are really looking forward to moving in," said Darin.
The east side fire station, located at 800 E. Wilson St., hadn't been renovated since it was built, back in 1980, according to Darin. Back then, the city employed six full-time firefighters and 32 part-time staff.
"Now, we have 37 full-time and 32 part-time (staff), so you can see how much we've grown," said Darin.
Linnea Miller, 3rd Ward alderman, said the city had been talking about renovating the city's fire stations for years, but money was a primary deterrent.
Roaming through the spacious east side fire station, Miller couldn't contain her enthusiasm.
"I'm just so thrilled I can hardly stand it," she said. "It's so important that they have the space so that they can do their jobs properly, and yet, I feel it was done economically as well."
The east side fire station renovation, set to be completed in October, is part of an $11.2 million project to update and expand both the east side and the west side stations. The 23,754-square-foot west side fire station, located at 1400 W. Main St., is set to open in September.
Voters approved a referendum increasing the city's sales tax half of 1 percent to pay for the project, after which the city floated a $10 million bond issue.
Trust me all these stations are FRIGGIN HUGE!!!
By Michele du Vair special to the beacon news
BATAVIA -- Look past the mobiles, the mounds of dirt and the portable potties, and Batavia's east side fire station expansion and renovation project is looking pretty fabulous.
At least that's the consensus of city officials gathered Thursday night for the 75 percent completion tour.
"The project is on time and on schedule," said Chris Hansen, architect for Kluber, Skahan and Associates whose firm designed the station. "It's progressing very well."
Features of the renovated fire station include the addition of an extra bay and the expansion of the existing three bays, as well as a mezzanine for dry storage, a board room off the handicapped-accessible main lobby, a command center and tons more living and storage space.
Indeed, the soon-to-be completed, 26,014-square-foor fire station roughly will triple its previous size, according to Batavia Fire Chief Bill Darin.
"It's been a long time coming, and the fire department personnel are really looking forward to moving in," said Darin.
The east side fire station, located at 800 E. Wilson St., hadn't been renovated since it was built, back in 1980, according to Darin. Back then, the city employed six full-time firefighters and 32 part-time staff.
"Now, we have 37 full-time and 32 part-time (staff), so you can see how much we've grown," said Darin.
Linnea Miller, 3rd Ward alderman, said the city had been talking about renovating the city's fire stations for years, but money was a primary deterrent.
Roaming through the spacious east side fire station, Miller couldn't contain her enthusiasm.
"I'm just so thrilled I can hardly stand it," she said. "It's so important that they have the space so that they can do their jobs properly, and yet, I feel it was done economically as well."
The east side fire station renovation, set to be completed in October, is part of an $11.2 million project to update and expand both the east side and the west side stations. The 23,754-square-foot west side fire station, located at 1400 W. Main St., is set to open in September.
Voters approved a referendum increasing the city's sales tax half of 1 percent to pay for the project, after which the city floated a $10 million bond issue.