FD explores its growth options

Rutland Herald

By BRYANNA ALLEN STAFF WRITER

   ‍KILLINGTON — The ‍Killington Select Board and town members met Tuesday morning to talk about the direction to take regarding the town fire station.    The current station, on ‍Killington Road, is in disrepair and no longer meets state criteria or the needs of the volunteer fire department.    Town Manager Seth Webb said the town hired architects Alan Brown and Don Walter to evaluate the building and the 1.3 acre lot of land it sits on. They then presented the numerous problems with the building and possible solutions.    The 1974 building has uneven floors, inefficient insulation, plumbing and electricity, no cross ventilation and not enough storage for equipment, to name a few issues, Brown said.    “Fire stations from the ’70s are facing the same problems across the country,” Brown said. “Back in the day, they were top-notch, now they’re just too old.”    With a lack of proper storage for the turnout gear, they are exposed to soot and sunlight, both factors that play a part in deterioration of the expensive equipment.    The station is also missing a sprinkler system, a criterion for new stations being built or old ones undergoing serious renovations.    Another issue with the station is how close to the road it is. Brown and Walter explained how a fire station should be set back 50-60 feet from the road, not 5 or 6 feet.    Volunteer Fire Chief Gary Roth said every time there is a fire it was a struggle and waste of time trying to maneuver the large rigs out of the station and into the road without disrupting traffic.    “My biggest concern is for the safety of the crew,” Roth said. He referred to everything from the lack of a secondary emergency exit to the lack of room in the vehicle bays, causing the firefighters to be exposed to exhaust.    Options presented included a renovation of the building, additions to the building or ripping it down to build a new one. All options required purchasing more of the surrounding property to establish a parking lot.    Other possibilities included adding a police department onto the fire station to give the Killing-ton police a more stable home base and joining the emergency services together for convenience. Both departments would be able to share a wide variety of resources, including radio towers and conference rooms.    The purchase of an entirely new lot of land to build on was another option, one that Selectman Ken Lee supports.    “It makes no sense to invest in that building,” Lee said. “It’s a waste of money because we’ll be back in the same situation a few years from now. And there is no room for future expansion on that plot.” The structure is around 7,000 square feet; a building able to host all the needs of the department would have to be around 18,000 square feet, estimated Walter and Brown.    One concern was the support from locals when it comes to funding the new building — a factor that hasn’t been openly talked about yet.    “There are about 1,000 ‍Killington residents,” said board member Chris Bianchi. “But the fire station provides service to about 10,000 structures between the resort and businesses.”    Bianchi said he feared voters wouldn’t see it that way and shoot down the idea of such an investment.    Webb will put the presentation of the building assessment on the town website so residents can better understand details.    For now, the board will look more closely at potential costs and further options.    “We need to support our firefighters,” board member Patty McGrath said. “We ask a lot of them and they get no compensation. We should give them what they need and encourage town involvement.” bryanna.allen    @ rutlandherald.com  

Comment: It's not in the article that the proposed cost of the building would be $300 per square foot and according to an attendee at the meeting someone said it would be closet to $400 per square foot. So that would put the cost between $5.4 and $7.2 million dollars.  That's where my $7 million dollar number in the previous post came from apparently.
More later.
To address some of the issues presented above:
-" it was a struggle and waste of time trying to maneuver the large rigs out of the station and into the road without disrupting traffic." "
There were traffic lights which stopped traffic when engines went out. What happened to those and why couldn't they be reinstalled?
- "a fire station should be set back 50-60 feet from the road, not 5 or 6 feet."
That's not the way it was built. How did they possibly get by for forty years with only five or six feet.
 - "The station is also missing a sprinkler system"
This is a fire house - you would think they would practice fire safety procedures which would preclude the necessity for a sprinkler system. You would think that if there was a fire the fire department could put it out efficiently. 

What is not stated in the article is that the primary reason for a new firehouse is that the FD is planning to purchase a new tanker truck which is larger than what they currently have and it would not fit in the current space. The reason for this is that they do not have enough water to fight fires because for the most part they do not have access to hydrants and have to truck the water to the fire site.
So they want a larger building to house a larger fire engine. 

I really do not understand how the FD is complaining about not having its needs met. Steve Finer stated the the Killington FD has the highest rating in all of Vermont - and, if I remember correctly, it is the only FD with that rating in Vermont.
I know a few of the firefighters and have been told our FD is exceptionally well equipped. 
If we are considering spending millions simply because of a larger tanker truck to carry water to fires why do we not seriously consider a water system as was defined in the recent water study. This would give the town the ability to distribute fire hydrants all over the mountain in the most densely developed areas of town. This would certainly address the issue of only 1,000 residents and 10,000 structures and obviate the need for the larger tanker truck.
I asked Steve Finer about this at a Rotary meeting - and he gave me a blank look and stated he has not ever considered it. So alternative solutions seem not have been considered. 
The proposal is for 18,000 square feet - increasing from 7,000 -  that's more than 2 and a half times more than the existing facility. Are we going to have to buy more equipment to fill up all that room?

What is included in the per square foot cost of $300 to $400. Is it the cost of the just the building itself as designed by the architect?  Does it include the foundation and excavation work? Does it include the purchase of land? If not, these are significant expenditures which need to be included in any cost projections. 

Don't get me wrong - if the community votes to accept this proposal more power to the fire department but at this point the any proposal needs to be fully vetted and questions asked and answered.



Vito