JOINT FIRE DISTRICT Main station prepares to undergo renovations

The Western Reserve district has three fire stations.
By DENISE DICK
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
POLAND -- The Western Reserve Joint Fire District's main station will undergo a face-lift.
Bids are due Sept. 14 for the work estimated at between $250,000 and $300,000.
"We're hoping everything is started before the end of September," said Chief David Comstock.
Work is expected to take between 90 and 120 days to complete.
Comstock said that earlier this year, the district asked Strollo Architects Inc. of Youngstown to develop a list of work needed at its three fire stations. The company divided the list into three categories: critical, recommended and suggested.
The list of critical items totaled about $138,000. Recommended work reached $415,000, and the suggested list tallied about $358,000.
Comstock said the district didn't have the money to do all of the work immediately but picked some items to address from those deemed critical and recommended. Part of the work will be paid out of next year's budget, the chief said.
Project focus
The district opted to focus on the main station on South Main Street in the village. The building is owned by the village and leased to the district, which is responsible for maintenance and upkeep.
Built in 1923, it's also the oldest of the district's three stations.
Comstock said that the roof over the bays, which tends to leak, will be replaced as part of the project. Windows will be replaced, and the building's front apron will be extended to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act.
"The four pillars that are holding the short part of the roof up are rotting, and we're going to replace the pillars," the chief said.
Although built in 1923, the building was moved in the early 1960s, and two apparatus bays were added. Part of the basement of the old building was filled in but not completely so that when the new building's apron was built over top of where the old basement was, it sank some, Comstock said.
When work begins to upgrade the apron, workers also will replace a sewer line expected to improve drainage in the basement, which has sprung a few leaks in heavy rains.
Some of the building's bricks also will be replaced during the project.
Most of the work came from the items identified by the architects as either critical or recommended.
The district has applied for federal grants to secure two additional items identified by the architects -- emergency generators and diesel exhaust systems -- for the stations.