Hastings Fire Chief John Townsend presented before the city council workshop on Monday, March 16 on the future of the Hastings fire station including testing for new sites. Chief Townsend presented a study from CNH Architects laying out various paths forward for the department ranging from a remodel on the existing site to a new fire station at another site in town.

The Hastings fire station was built in 1961 and remodeled in 1994. It is 19,000 square feet featuring five pull-through bays and three back-in bays. In the decades since the fire station was constructed, the volume of calls to the department have increased significantly, requiring more staff.

Of particular note in the discussion of remodeling or building a new fire station is the health of fire fighters. Modern fire stations are laid out in a gradient of hot to cold zones that seek to isolate the contaminants coming back from fires from areas that firefighters would normally spend more time in.

The Hastings fire station lacks many of the modern design aspects of this hot-cold gradient with communal and fitness areas directly in the engine bays, exposing firefighters to carcinogens and contaminants regularly.

Townsend called the current layout “not ideal,” saying that firefighters are “crossing that hazard zone line pretty consistently.”

In addition, due to the increased volume of calls, the department has grown over the years, crowding the existing number of dorms, showers, bathrooms, lockers and storage space.

“We’re pretty packed in there,” said Townsend.

The options laid out by CNH Architects ranged from an addition to the existing fire station, a temporary remodel to the construction of a new fire station. The proposed addition to the existing fire station would include the construction of a training tower and more showers and bathrooms. This option is estimated to cost $22 million.

Despite the ongoing financial strain the city is experiencing due to the construction of three water treatment plants expected to cost nearly $70 million over the next five years, city councilors appeared to be leaning towards constructing a new fire station at some point in the future.

“We need to build a new fire station,” said Council member Lisa Leifeld. Other councilors agreed.

The cost of building a new fire station, according to CNB’s estimate, would start at $31 million in addition to the cost of purchasing land for the new site if necessary. Councilors spoke to the long-term investment of constructing a new site rather than spending less, only to revisit the issue three to five years down the road.

“It’s expensive, and it’s expensive on top of a lot of other expenses we have now,” said City Administrator Dan Wietecha.

Part of that investment into a new site would be space available for a new police station at a further point in the future, and thus the creation of a public safety center in town. A new police station was also an issue discussed at the workshop with a new station expected at some point in the future.

In discussing a new site for a future fire station, the location is key. Placement of a future fire station along major thoroughfares would allow better response times across more of the community.

Townsend showcased the response times of various hypothetical locations of future fire stations. According to this method a location near 18^th Street and Vermillion is a “sweet spot,” able to reach 99.1% of the community in under six minutes said Townsend.

While the city council appeared sympathetic to the creation of a new fire station, many of the details of funding, location and design are unclear and still far off. It’s an issue of “how and when,” said Mayor Mary Fasbender.