WESTFIELD–While residents may feel that construction efforts in the city are never on schedule or within budget, there are at least some projects that go against that belief.
One of those projects is the Westfield Fire Department Little River Road substation.
“It’s on time and it’s on budget,” Westfield Fire deputy chief Eric Bishop, said.
The exterior of the Little River Road station
“There’s been minor issues but it’s going well,” he said. “Projects of this magnitude will always have issues but luckily there’s been nothing major.”
The project had a price tag of $2.06 million, and was originally OKed in June of this year by city council. The project is set to replace the original fire station there, which was erected in 1973, and was given an initial end date of March 2017.
The original building was frustrating for firefighters, EMTs and paramedics, since it had no air conditioning and needed both window and roof repair. Also, it had just one bathroom and no separate locker rooms. This may have been acceptable in 1973, but as the fire department becomes more diverse the need for separate bathrooms and locker rooms became a must.
HVAC and sprinkler system inside the station
The building is currently being worked on both inside and outside simultaneously, with much of the construction of the frame having been done. In addition, the sprinkler system, fans, heating, air conditioning and lighting have all been installed inside, as well.
The fire apparatus inside the vehicle bay of the new station
The majority of the building is not currently operational but the bay where an ambulance and firefighting apparatus are both kept is heated and functioning.
While construction continues, the firefighters, EMTs and paramedics spend their time when not on calls in a house trailer behind the station. The crews are given the basic amenities there, including a kitchen, bathroom, electricity, air conditioning and sleeping quarters.
The new building is going to be one story tall, and will include a community room that will double as a classroom, two bathrooms, an office for firefighter, EMT and paramedic training and a larger living area so that it can one day house more personnel.
A heating unit inside the station
In addition, the classroom will have interconnected functionality with the other stations in the city, so classroom training can happen in different areas at one time and stations are not left without proper coverage.
According to Bishop, the facility should be undergoing initial inspection in about two weeks, but that will not be its final inspection before its considered operational.
