City moving forward on new fire station

March 29--FAIRMONT -- A new East Side Fire Station is one step closer to reality following action at this week's Fairmont City Council meeting.

A public hearing for an ordinance authorizing the purchase of a new location for the construction of the new fire station was held at the meeting.

Following the hearing, the ordinance was adopted.

It provides for and authorizes the purchase of certain parcels of real estate situated in the City of Fairmont, Union District, Marion County on Vermont Avenue and Morgantown Avenue from Teddy R. Edwards and Joy R. Silverman Edwards and James B. McCormley, respectively, to provide a location for the construction of the new fire station.

The purchase of the lot on Vermont Avenue, which is 7,753.40 square feet, is for $87,500 and the lot on Morgantown Avenue, which is 6,156.61 square feet, is for $105,000, according to a previously published report.

"This has been many months of work in searching for a location for a fire station to replace the more than 100-year-old facility on the corner of Morgantown and East Park," city manager Robin Gomez said. He said the location is "desirable."

Fire Chief Ed Simmons provided information about the work that is ahead, following the adoption of the ordinances.

The next step is for an architect to prepare a conceptual design, which will determine where the core drilling will take place. The core drilling will find out if the site is geo-technically suitable for the new station.

Simmons noted that the fire department looked at approximately two dozen sites, and the proposed site meets insurance requirements for geographical distance.

During the public hearing, a resident, Jim McCormley, provided testimony in support of the new fire station. He noted that his son, Jim, owns one of the properties where the new fire station is proposed to be located. He was the only person who stepped up to the podium to testify, other than the fire chief.

"I've lived on Vermont Avenue for 41 years and I plan to remain there. It's very important to me that the neighborhood retains the fire station and it also rids itself of unsightly properties that reduce the value of homes in the area. The new fire station will accomplish both those goals at once."

He also testified that some people may be concerned about additional noise and traffic difficulties, but said "the facts don't back that up."

"According to Fire Chief Ed Simmons, 589 calls were made from the East Side Fire Station during the period Sept. 21, 2016 to Sept. 20, 2017," he noted. "That's an average of 1.61 calls per day."

Simmons had testified that the fire department "typically" won't blare its sirens as firefighters are leaving the station, and plans are to "tone down" the alerting system to a softer tone.

McCormley also testified, "The area surrounding the proposed location of the fire department is populated by a mostly aging group of people. With age comes health problems. The idea of having the first responders moments away is invaluable. To a stroke or heart attack victim as with a fire, every second counts. In addition, the fire department will be centrally located between the two schools in our area and centrally located only a block from the intersection of the two main streets on East Side, Morgantown Avenue and East Park Avenue."

"God forbid we would have a fire or a situation at one of our schools that seems to be happening at schools all over our nation with a person intent on taking the lives of our children," he continued. "To have the first responders that close is a necessity. The location sits almost in the middle of East Fairmont and is the best suited for responding to a call anywhere on East Side. The idea that moving the fire station one block would cause added noise and inconvenience is more than offset by the safety and the upgrade to the appearance of the neighborhood that the new station would bring."

McCormley had visited residents and business owners on various streets in the area, asking them their opinion of the new fire station and if they would be willing to sign a petition supporting the proposed location of the new fire station.

"These would be the people most affected by any inconvenience," he testified. "I was surprised that only one person declined to sign the petition and I would like to submit that petition to the city council now."

The petition he presented included 62 signatures, according to City Clerk Janet L. Keller.

McCormley ended his testimony by stating, "I feel the benefits of the new fire department will greatly outweigh any minor inconvenience that less than two calls a day on average might cause a few people."

Councilman Philip Mason commented that the proposed new location "looks to me like a good property."

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