Oak Park Board officials decided to move forward with a new design option for the planned replacement of Fire Station Two at 212 Augusta St. The new station has an estimated cost of about $12.7 million.
The decision to advance the plan came from a unanimous vote by Village Board members at a special meeting on July 28.
The approved design for the station encompasses a new and larger site that allows for more parking and safety features. Unlike the current fire station, it would not have a basement and would be a two-story building.
Nathan Melotte, a managing director for consulting firm Cordogan Clark, said the option preferred by the board could pose an issue because of its size. The proposed station would be a larger building that would be over a little over 11,000 square feet, approximately 1,000 more square footage than the current station, which would require the station to move.
As officials decide where to move the station, JT Terry, Oak Park’s fire chief, said some other things to keep in mind would be looking at “the safest and most efficient routes” and “where our services change and how we provide the best services to the current and future residents of Oak Park.”
For one thing, the larger building would allow for the addition of an Advance Life Support Ambulance Crew and provide “recruitment and retaining enhancements” for the fire department, Melotte said.
Right now, there is inadequate space in the building for the vehicles and equipment, and it is undersized for the people in the building, Melotte said, as the building was built in the early 1900s to accommodate horses and fire wagons instead of modern firefighting apparatus.
Melotte also presented two other options to the board, one of which would be able to remain at the same location and another that would be the same size at a different location. Both of the other options cost more than $10 million.
Village Board member James Taglia said officials should start looking into acquiring land for the new fire station even though the budget is tight.
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“The financing and all that we’re talking about, we’re going to actually undertake a large debt moving forward trying to deal with the police station, the village hall, the other things we’re funding, and we will be near the limit of our debt capacity,” Taglia said. “So we have to maybe look at shifting things potentially, but also looking for the future, and options of land don’t come along very often, so I think we should be actively looking with our economic vitality people for property and secure that now.”
There are two other fire stations, the main headquarters located at 100 N. Euclid Ave., and another at 918 S. East Ave.
Village Board member Chibuike Enyia said one benefit of the option board members chose was it could accommodate future plans and usage of the fire department.
“I think option three gives the most flexibility for a growing fire department, but also some flexibility when it comes to room, space, concerns and making sure we’re not putting ourselves in a similar situation in the near future,” he said, adding it’s better to build “something that grows with this fire department that can grow for a longer period of time.”
The new fire station plan was moved to Oak Park’s Finance Committee as officials figure out where it fits into the budget.