BY JANET C. WETZEL
The Cincinnati Enquirer
LOVELAND -- For years, Loveland Police Department and Loveland-Symmes Fire Department were squeezed into quarters with inadequate space for training, storage and daily functions.
No more. They are now housed in a new safety center at 126 S. Lebanon Road, where they enjoy plenty of space, including one of the largest training rooms in Hamilton County.
They started moving in late last year. The departments are now settled in and are ready to show off their $1.9 million digs.
A grand opening - dedication 2-5 p.m. Sunday will include refreshments and tours of the new building, with Loveland Intermediate School fifth-grade student council members serving as guides, Police Chief Dennis Rees said.
The building will be dedicated to the late John Fritz, the city's first police chief when the department was formed in 1948. Mr. Fritz had been the town marshal until that time, said City Manager Mark Fitzgerald. Some of Mr. Fritz's grandchildren will attend the dedication.
Keynote speaker will be state Sen. Richard Finan, R- Evendale. "We're really proud of this place, and it was definitely needed," Chief Rees said. "Instead of just getting by, now we're able to provide much more professional service, and we have the space and resources to get things done that we didn't have before."
In the old quarters in city hall, "we had about 2,400 square feet designated for the police department, and 900 of that was hallway," Chief Rees said, laughing. The police department now has 7,200 square feet of office space.
And the location allows better access to all of Loveland.
"It's really improved our response time and capability and is a lot more convenient," Chief Rees said.
The fire department is equally happy with its new home. It replaces an early 1960s building -- which was on the site of the new one -- that had no space for a kitchen, dormitories, showers or other necessities for firefighters on long duty, Assistant Fire Chief Otto Huber said.
The new place has men's and women's dorms with space to sleep 18 people, administrative headquarters, a conference room and storage, he said.
