Fire Station No. 3, the only fire station in east McComb, is a step closer to being replaced.
McComb selectmen voted unanimously Tuesday to authorize a task order with Neel-Schaffer not to exceed $40,000 to design a replacement for Fire Station No. 3 on East Michigan Avenue.
McComb Fire Chief Stephen Adams has been asking the board to replace the structurally unsound station nearly every week since he was appointed in December.
He said he appreciates selectmen allowing him to move one step closer to completing the process.
“I applaud them for going ahead and giving us some leeway to go ahead and carry on,” Adams said. “Prior to this, all I could do was sit down and draw it on a piece of paper. This enables us to get it designed and get it ready for bids.”
Adams said the new station would be located on the back side of the fire station’s lot on the corner of East Michigan Avenue and Elmwood Street, and the new station will face Elmwood.
The station also is expected to cover approximately 3,750 square feet, which is slightly smaller than the station firefighters are working in now, and will cost up to $120 per square foot or approximately $450,000.
However, Adams said this figure is “probably a worst-case scenario,” and he hopes to be able to keep costs as low as possible without compromising the integrity and longevity of the building.
“There’s no way to know a real cost until we get the design done to where we can put it out for contractors and see what we get back,” he said. “We’re going to try to minimize the amount of building materials and types of materials as much as we can. We’re trying not to be extravagant but have a building that will meet our needs but at the same time, nothing that’s got a lot of wasted space. We want to be fair to the taxpayers as best we can.”
Steve Cox with Cox Architecture has met with Adams, city administrator Quordiniah Lockley, Mayor Whitney Rawlings and zoning director Walter Temple a few times to come up with a basic layout that works for the fire department but is economical enough to keep costs at a minimum.
The floor plan consists of two bathrooms — one for each gender should a female firefighter join the department — plus six small bedrooms, a day room, a training room, storage areas and an engine bay. While the new station is expected to be about 150 square feet smaller, Adams said the layout removes all “wasted space” and optimizes the usable area.
“That means we would have to be very diligent in our design phase to make sure that everything fits and is very practically laid out,” he said. “I think we can do that. We’ve got a good architect on it, and I think among the group of us, I think we can do that.”
The fire department has $300,000 in rebate funds to put toward the project, and the next round of selectmen who take office July 1 will have to find grants to put toward the work or dedicate general fund monies to the construction.
“We’ll seek money where we can to help, but there are some other avenues we might find to help cover the cost of building this fire station,” Rawlings said.
Adams said firefighters would remain in Fire Station No. 3 for now, but he will inform the public when they are temporarily moved to Fire Station No. 1 on Third Street until the new station is completed.
