Sneak peek: A firsthand look at what Springfield's 3 new fire stations will look like
Barring any unforeseen circumstances, Springfield Fire Chief Ed Canny said crews will move into three newly constructed stations by the end of the year.
This isn't, however, the only time the city has had an ambitious building streak when it comes to firehouses.
Four stations — 3, 4, 5 and 6 — were completed in 1954 and are still in service, though Station 6 is being replaced in the newest round.
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But these are not, said Canny, on a recent tour of the three construction sites with The State Journal-Register, your father's firehouses.
"Most of the (current) houses that were built in the 1950s were a shotgun-style approach," said Canny, who has been chief for nine months. "You walked in the door, and you were in the living room and then you moved into a dorm-style bedroom and then you were in the kitchen. It was basically three big rooms.
"Now we've gone to people needing privacy. We've got more and more female firefighters. The move is there for more separation, but there's also the move to improve health and safety."
That includes keeping carcinogens and blood-borne pathogens out of the house, he added. After coming back from calls, firefighters will dump their gear in a separate "hot zone" before going into the living quarters.
O'Shea Builders is heading up the $25 million project that involves about 100 workers between the three sites, said project supervisor Dusty Rademaker.
Stations 8 and 13 have identical designs, checking in at about 10,000 square feet, said project manager Justin Schaefer. Station 6 will be a bit larger, about 12,000 square feet, with a community room that includes a Springfield Police substation.
With the newer firehouses, Station 1 from 1995 and Station 12 from 1996, drivers don't have to back in rigs. The new constructions have multiple access points and aprons of concrete where they can circle around to pull in, Canny said.
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Building three firehouses has its unique challenges, Schaefer admitted, but because Station 8 is further along by about a month, supervisors and workers have been able to apply lessons from there to the other stations.
Here's a rundown on the particular sites:
Station 8
Station 8's new structure will be on Rickard Road, just off Lawrence Avenue, putting it further west from current location on West Monroe Street off Chatham Road.
The station's move will look to improve response times, especially to nursing homes and retirement facilities on the west and northwest sides of the city, Canny said.
"It puts us right on Veterans Parkway, so it gives us that avenue to be able to travel a lot quicker," he added.
A "substantial completion date" is targeted for May, with move-in a month to six weeks later, perhaps in July.
Station 13
The newest designated station, Station 13, is being built on Spaulding Orchard Road, just off Route 4 (Veterans Parkway).
The first new station creation since 1996 will address the city's growing south and west sides "where we're deficient in fire coverage," Canny admitted.
"We'll go south down to Piper Glen," he added "We'll be able to get to all of these neighborhoods, Savannah Pointe, Irongate, everything along here. Once they get the MacArthur Boulevard extension through, we'll be able to get to the Scheels Sports Complex pretty quickly."
Schaefer said the station is about a month behind Station 8 construction-wise. Brickwork and roofing will be the next big things to occur there, Canny added.
Completion date is slated for some time in June with move-in in August.
Station 6
Station 6 moves almost straight through from 2156 S. Ninth St. to 11th Street, just south of Ash Street.
Station 6 is on the property of the former Honeywell-Hobbs, which produced controls, switches, lighting systems, battery indicators and meters for the transportation industry before shutting down in 2010.
To mitigate any environmental concerns, Schaefer said O'Shea removed six to seven feet of soil and filled it in with virgin rock.
An environmental barrier under the footprint of the building would prevent any possible contaminants that could leech up from coming into the building, Schaefer added.
Workers still have to do the structural framing and then start setting the trusses, he said.
A substantial completion date is Sept. 1 with move-in by mid-October.
Contact Steven Spearie: 217-622-1788; sspearie@sj-r.com; X, twitter.com/@StevenSpearie.
This article originally appeared on State Journal-Register: First look: Springfield Fire Department building 3 new fire stations
