Central Village Fire Station functionally obsolete, says Chief

Central Village Fire Station functionally obsolete, says Chief.

EverythingWestport.com

Wednesday, Jun 4, 2008

View photos of the meeting with PowerPoint slides 21 photos | Dial-up speed | Broadband/DSL speed |

Chief Brian R. Legendre presented his case for new South End Fire Station at a sparsely attended, town informational meeting held this Wednesday night at the Town Hall Annex. Members of the Fire Station Building Committee were in attendance.

“OSHA condemned the current Central Village station house in 2004 because of serious structural defects,” said Fire Chief Legendre. “And our ceiling, which contains asbestos, requires containment wherever it’s deteriorating. Our septic system has failed with sewerage backing up into the building, and we have no handicap access. Stone lintels are cracked, leaving the metal windows to support the wall above. We have no storage for equipment and supplies.”

The Central Village fire station was built in 1928 by volunteer firefighters, and later expanded in 1978 with the help of Diman Regional Vocational students, both with privately raised capital and donations, and at no cost to the town.

“Our current ambulance was custom built at great expense to fit our limited garage space,” Legendre said. We have been informed that custom vehicles will no longer be available to us in the future.”

“Our fire fighters reside on the second floor, and risk injury every time they rush down the narrow stairs, or use the fire pole to respond to alarms,” Legendre said. Brass firemen’s poles, although glamorous, have been the cause of many injuries nationwide, and are being phased out due to high cost and safety issues. The National Fire Protection Association has called for the removal of all poles from fire stations, due to hazards. Oddly enough, Central Village fire fighters themselves are at a high risk due to fire because of a lack of secondary egress.

Left to right: (1) Existing Central Village Fire Station; (2) Westport Point resident Paul Maurice asked a lot of pointed questions; (3) Deputy Chief Allen Manley Jr. with former Selectwoman Veronica Beaulieu; and (4) topical mock-up of the South End Station.

The Central Village Fire Station building is owned by The Westport Volunteer Fire Company, and is on land originally leased by Charlie Wood “for as long as its use is for fire prevention purposes.” Former Westport Fire Chief Bill Tripp is president of the Fire Company (read more about the history of fire stations in Westport).

“Our rent has tripled in the last few years,” said Legendre, “to help the Fire Company pay for the correction of structural defects.”

Legendre pointed out many areas that increase the cost of the new station. “Our fire trucks have to carry anywhere from 1200 to 1800 gallons of water to a fire,” he said. “We are a community without town water or sewer. Even the new station’s sprinkler system, required by state standards, becomes a concern over a reliable water supply.”

Chief Legendre presented the floor plan layouts and explained their use. “All our Central Village firefighters will reside on the ground floor,” he said. “Administration will reside on the second floor, and the basement will have a 25 person training room as well as adequate storage areas. Currently, administration is spread out between the Briggs Road and the Central Village stations,” Legendre said.

“The Briggs Road station is now at capacity. The new South End fire station will extend the useful life of the Briggs Road facility without having to expand,” Legendre explained. Four bays were added to the Briggs Road station in 1999.

Committee member Paul Schmid pointed out that every effort was made to keep the design “no larger than necessary and as inexpensive as possible.” It was pointed out that new building and safety codes adversely affect the cost of new construction.

In response to a resident’s question, Legendre explained that the proposal calls for a brick veneer or vinyl siding, as well as an asphalt roof to reduce cost and overall building maintenance. The building will be visible from Hixbridge Road, and visible from Route 88 only during the winter months, he explained.

Questioned about the turn onto Adamsville Road from Main Road, Legendre said it wasn’t an issue, that “he has made the turn himself with little effort.” Sporadically busy traffic conditions at the current location will be less of an issue at the new facility “with pre-emptive lights at the Route 88 intersection” according to Deputy Chief Manley.

Left: Original, hand-pulled fire apparatus used in Westport before the Central Station Fire Station was built in 1928. PHOTO BY EVERYTHINGWESTPORT.COM

Location was an issue with some town residents. They expressed concerns with the taking of land that the cemetery could use, or why couldn’t the fire station expand at the current location. “The amount of land for the South End station does not impact the cemetery’s requirements,” Legendre said. ”They need much more land than that. The station will be built in town forest, not on cemetery land. The town has money in the coffers for cemetery land purchase, and they can buy land anywhere. Location of the fire station is critical and much more restrictive,” Legendre said.

Former selectwoman Veronica Beaulieu added that current leaseholder Jim Wood can’t sell or lease additional land to the town over the next 10 years because of a state lien on the property.

Chief Legendre presented a PowerPoint “cost research analysis” slide on other recently built fire stations in Massachusetts, pointing out that Westport’s costs are in line with those other projects.

Westport residents are at a disadvantage without town water, and fire insurance premiums are higher as a result. “With an outdated fire station, there is even more pressure on insurance rates,” Legendre said. “Response time becomes critical. A new fire station will help the men get out of the facility more quickly and more safely, and that helps everybody.”

“If the override is approved on June 17th, bids will be out by September 8th and construction will take about 1 ½ to 2 years,” Chief Legendre said.

Any questions, please contact Chief Brian R. Legendre at (508) 636-1110.

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