Tuesday, February 01, 2000
Fairfield replaces outmoded firehouse
BY SUE KIESEWETTER
Enquirer Contributor
FAIRFIELD — When Fairfield's newest fire station opens this spring on Dixie Highway, firefighters will have a place to sleep and exercise, and a safer way to enter traffic.
Firehouse No.2 is being built behind the existing station just south of Boymel Drive on busy Ohio 4. Instead of being 30 feet off the highway, the new brick and glass structure will be 100 feet from the roadway.
“This should be the last firehouse we need,” said Chief Donald Bennett. “It may not be in the absolute correct position, but we'll be able to respond to 90 percent of the calls in Fairfield within four minutes from one of the three stations.”
The new structure replaces the old 8,000-square-foot station the city built in 1954 and remodeled 16 years later, Councilman Sterling Uhler said. It will have bigger bays to house the trucks and equipment, four offices, a public meeting room, combination kitchen/day room, sleeping quarters for firefighters and a workout room.
“I think it's going to be one of our most utilized stations down there in the industrial area,” Mr. Uhler said. “There are also a lot of condos and residential areas in the service area.”
Road sensors will help stop traffic to make it safer to get out onto Ohio 4 when responding to calls. A service drive in the back that ties to Boymel Drive will allow a safe return to the station without stopping traffic.
“There was a time when we had to abandon the station for a period in the late 1980s because to get the equipment in, we had to back onto Ohio 4,” Mr. Uhler said. “That lot probably wasn't the best choice. It was built on the cheap — a little small for today's equipment.”
Work on the $1.4 million station is slightly behind schedule because an underground stream just 91/2 feet down necessitated a more durable footer system and drainage plan. The existing building will come down in April.
By the time the new station opens, Chief Bennett said he is hoping the department will be ready to hire nine firefighters who also will be certified as paramedics.That would double the full-time staff.
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