August 16 Congressman John B. Larson joined East Hartford Mayor Melody Currey and Fire Chief John Oates on Brewer Street for a ground-breaking ceremony marking the beginning of construction of a new Fire Station No. 5 replacing the oldest firehouse in town with what will be, when complete, the most modern and energy-efficient fire safety building in the state.
Last year the congressman - along with Senator Joe Lieberman and Vice President Joe Biden - was influential in helping to secure approximately $3.5 million in federal funding to support the construction of the new building. East Hartford taxpayers had already approved bonding for the new firehouse; despite East Hartford's plans for the construction, federal officials also decided the East Hartford fire station would make a good example of stimulus-funded public projects.
The federal stimulus funds will allow the town to use less of the bond funds than it had planned, but also spend slightly more than originally proposed to make the new Fire Station No. 5 more energy-efficient. The new station will also house a mechanics garage, relocating the fire mechanics from a broken-down old brick garage on Tolland Street where they have been promised a new facility since before the town built its new $27-million Public Safety Complex at 31 School St. in 2003.
"I am unbelievably proud of the fire department and the entire town of East Hartford for this great addition to our public safety infrastructure. This project will create jobs immediately and enhance overall safety and emergency response in our community," said Congressman Larson. "Today's ceremony wouldn't have been possible without the funding provided by the Recovery Act and the hard work of Mayor Currey, Chief Oates, and their respective staffs."
According to Congressman Larson, Fire House No. 5 will receive funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act's Assistance to Firefighters Fire Station Construction Grants (SCG) program.
East Hartford was the only town in Connecticut and one of only three in New England to receive the SCG funding. Vice President Joe Biden visited East Hartford in December to make the announcement.
The new Fire Station No. 5 be rated 'Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design' (LEED) 'Silver'meaning it meets the highest energy efficiency and 'green building' standards in the nation. The LEED rating system was designed by the U.S. Green Building Council to encourage and facilitate the development of more energy-efficient, environmentally-safe and sustainable buildings.
Congressman Larson, whose father, Ray, served as a fire captain at Pratt & Whitney Aircraft for over three decades, noted: "The new Fire House 5 will be an invaluable resource in providing for the safety of the families and visitors of East Hartford. The LEED-certified rating will help save taxpayers' money and make this a model for future fire house construction in the state and across our nation."
Over 18 months ago Congressman Larson supported East Hartford's grant application for the firehouse with a letter to the Department of Homeland Security. In December 2009, Vice President Joe Biden visited East Hartford to officially announce funding for the project.
Last week fencing and a construction trailer was set up on the site next to the SNET/ATT building on Brewer Street. Once completed the old fire station, which was built in 1931, will likely be razed.
Plaqued by leaks and mold, the town spent tens of thousands on a new boiler for the building which is structually deficient. Over the last decade, firefighters have filed grievances and complained about noxious fumes and the safety of the building which is inadequate to hold modern fire apparatus. The second floor building, which has dormitory space for firefighters, was added onto the roof of the original, circa 1931 structure and the floor is badly warped.
East Hartford's Building Utilization Task Force, chaired by then-town Councilman Gary LeBeau in 1987, identified Fire House No. 5, 2 and fire headquarters as all structually deficient 23 years ago. The town spent $160,000 on a new boiler for Fire House No. 2, and a similar amount on fixing a leaky roof and removing chemicals and mildew on Fire House No. 5 in 2006. In 2005 East Hartford recieved statewide publicity for a scabies outbreak at Fire House No. 5.
Under former fire chief Mike Eremita, the town finally drew up plans to replace the old Fire House No. 5 five years ago, after the scabies scare. In her year-end message in 2006, Mayor Melody Currey took credit for having pushed for, and received the community's approval, for a $6 million bond referendum on the November, 2006 ballot. But it was not until Mayor Currey and the town Corporation Counsel formally took possession of the Brewer Street site July 1, 2009 that the location of the new fire station voters approved in 2006 was made certain.
Congressman Larson's office noted in a Monday, August 15, 2010 press release that "it was not until federal funding that the project was finally able to move into the construction phase."
Included in the design will be geothermal heating and cooling, energy-efficient windows and a bay to service and resupply the town's Emergency Medical Services trucks. The design will allow a "drive-in, drive-out" traffic pattern for emergency vehicles which would enter the building from the Glenn Road side of the parcel, exiting from the front onto Brewer Street. During public hearings, some questions were raised about congestion on Brewer Street, perticularly during shift changes at nearby Pratt & Whitney Aircraft. In comparison to the need for firetrucks to sometimes drive the wrong way on a short stretch of Main Street to quickly acess Brewer Street and Route 2, tolerating rush hour congestion on Brewer seemed a trifle.
The new Fire Station No. 5 is expected to be completed within one year.
