BOARDMAN Fire station renovations set

The work should be completed by next summer.
By JOHN W. GOODWIN JR.
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
BOARDMAN -- Trustees have decided what renovations will be made to two fire stations here in a three-phase project to update the fire department.
Initial estimates to renovate the fire stations on South Avenue and Shields Road were about $1.3 million each. Trustees scaled back those plans because only a total of $1 million had been set aside for renovations at both buildings.
"I want the firefighters to be safe, and I want the residents to be safe, but I also want to live within my budget," said Trustee Tom Costello.
The new plans, Costello said, will sufficiently update the two fire stations, leaving room for growth, and are more in line with what trustees are looking to spend.
The firetruck garage at the Shields Road station will remain the same, but a storage area will be added for equipment now used by firefighters that was not a consideration when the building was built in the late 1950s. The garage can hold two firetrucks.
Kitchen, dining area
The kitchen and dining area at the station will be enlarged with added pantry space for each shift of firefighters. Township firefighters work one day on, two days off in three three-person shifts.
The firefighters share one bathroom and one shower, but that will change to three self-contained bathrooms and showers for privacy. A bathroom accessible to the disabled will also be added. Costello said voters, some with disabilities, come through the building during elections.
The station will also get a new fitness room and bunk space for up to six firefighters, with closet space for each. The station now has one open bunk room shared by all three firefighters on duty.
Total cost of renovations to the Shields Road station will be about $363,000.
Work done at the South Avenue location will be more extensive. Trustees plan to build a facility to the rear of the building, then tear down the old building when the new structure is complete.
Costello said a new building is needed because the station can house only one firetruck at a time and some of the trucks cannot fit into the garage. The station also has sleeping room for only two firefighters. The third firefighter has been sleeping on a rollaway bed.
The new building will house two trucks with room for any truck owned by the township. The building will also have the same kitchen, bathroom and sleeping quarter upgrades as the Shields Road Station.
Cost estimate
The estimated cost of construction is $980,000.
Bids from contractors to complete the work at both stations will open next week. Trustees say the work should be completed by next summer.
Renovations to the two stations are the first phase of a three-part project. In the second phase, the main fire station on U.S. Route 224 across from Southern Park Mall will be renovated. In the third phase, trustees will assess the need for, and economic impact of, a fourth fire station.
jgoodwin@vindy.com