Funding approved for fire station north of bypass
27 May 2022
Published by: https://www.hendersonvillestandard.com
USA – Hendersonville leaders recently approved funding for a seventh fire station – the city’s first to be located north of Vietnam Veterans Boulevard.
The $5.2 million, three-bay fire station will be located off of Drakes Creek Road in Volunteer Park at Arrowhead and is expected to cut in half response times for residents in several neighborhoods north of the bypass.
Hendersonville’s Board of Mayor and Aldermen voted to borrow $5.9 million in late 2020 with $2.5 million earmarked for the new fire station. However, a low bid by Boger Construction came in recently for $5.2 million due to rising construction costs.
Leaders discussed during a BOMA meeting on April 26 whether or not to build the new facility with two or three bays – a cost difference of about $400,000.
Currently only Station 3 on Bonita Parkway has three bays. Station 5 next to Hendersonville Medical Center has two-and-a-half bays while the other fire stations each have two bays.
When asked by an alderman why three bays were needed for the new fire station, Fire Chief Scotty Bush said his department is running out of storage space for vehicles and equipment the department uses on a regular basis.
He said he’d also like to use the space to house a special operations or heavy rescue unit that would take some of the wear and tear off of the other truck companies.
There was also discussion about potentially using a third bay to house the county’s ambulance service. Currently there are Sumner County EMS ambulances stationed in three Hendersonville fire stations.
Ward 2 Alderman Lee Peterson asked if Sumner County would help fund a third bay in order for its ambulance to be housed in the new Station 7. The county doesn’t currently contribute financially to share space at the other Hendersonville fire halls.
Mayor Jamie Clary said there have been ongoing conversations between his office and county officials, but no commitment has been made.
“I will continue to work on that,” said Clary.
Ward 3 Alderwoman Arlene Cunningham asked Bush to elaborate on how the new fire station would improve response times for firefighters in the growing area between Vietnam Veterans Boulevard and Long Hollow Pike near New Shackle Island Road.
Bush noted that it currently takes emergency personnel nine-and-a-half to ten minutes to get to the Autumn Creek, Durham Farms and Fountain Brooke subdivisions — more than double the national standard of four-and-a-half to five minutes.
The addition of a fire station at Volunteer Park will align response times with the national standard, Bush added. In addition, the new station will be able to service subdivisions along Saundersville Road in the event that Station 6 personnel are delayed by a train along the CSX rail line, he noted.
In the end, BOMA voted unanimously in two separate meetings April 26 and May 10 to appropriate an additional $2.9 million from the current fiscal year budget to pay for the construction of the new fire station. Leaders also voted to authorize Clary to sign a contract with Boger.
Bush said last week the city hopes to break ground on the new 9,029-square-foot structure within the next few weeks. It’s estimated to take around nine months to construct the new building, depending on supply issues and the weather, the fire chief added.
The local fire department has applied for a federal Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) grant to help pay for 12 additional firefighters. The department last received a SAFER grant for $1.8 million in 2018.
