BROOKINGS New digs for the citys main fire station took a step forward at Tuesdays Brookings City Council meeting, where it was learned that land just west of 307/309 Third Ave., which is the building housing the current police station and main fire station, is the desired site for construction.
Were really looking to get the property right next to the existing fire station, Fire Chief Troy Hughes said, noting that the city owns the land. Its not a big move throughout the neighborhoods its currently a police department parking lot for their personal vehicles and some department vehicles; theyve got a garage there.
City Manager Paul Briseno described the preferred location as the most optimal in order to best protect downtown Brookings and the northwest portion of the city, which is also seeing a good deal of growth.
The process to replace the main fire station, which Hughes said was built in 1960, is in its infancy.
Were just really getting started on this we just had, really, a couple of introductory meetings with some design team members, he said.
Hughes said public and neighborhood outreach will likely begin in September via meetings, door-to-door flyers, media outlets, city personnel and social media.
(Well) invite people over to the fire station so they can actually see the existing fire station and then also see some preliminary drawings of what we think were going to need for that new fire station, he said.
The next meeting with the design team is set for Sept. 2, Hughes said, adding that the outreach efforts are expected to begin shortly after that, including a community gathering at the main fire station in late September.
The genesis for Tuesday nights discussion was the first reading of a budget amendment that allocates $100,000 for engineering and soil testing at the preferred site. The money would come from the citys general fund reserves. A final vote on the amendment formally known as Ordinance 25-031 is expected at the City Councils meeting on Sept. 9.
Beyond the upcoming autumn public outreach, a rough timeline calls for bidding early next spring, depending on the suitability of the site.
Police station update
On a related matter, the city is continuing to look for the ideal site for a new public safety building. Briseno told the Brookings Register on Wednesday that six to eight sites have been investigated, but none have panned out.
Time is of the essence, he said. Not only do you have hungry contractors, but you also need to factor in tariffs and the changing development environment.
The facilitys cost has been estimated at $17 million, per earlier reporting in the Register, and the city has a ballpark figure of that total built up in savings to eventually build it. Still, the $17 million total will need updating as well, since the estimate was obtained nearly two years ago.
Leave a Reply