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Alna Facilities Planning Committee

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Date: January 07,2008

Time: 07:00 - 09:00

Location: Firehouse

Meeting Minutes:

Alna Facilities Planning Committee Meeting, January 7, 2008, held at the Firehouse at 7 p.m.

Present: Nick Caristo (NC), Gordon Davis (GD), John Green (JG), Fred Gumkowski (FG),   Kathy Pendleton (KP) and Cliff Russell(CR)

Absent:   Tom Albee and Brian Lawrence

Also present:   Roger Whitney and Paul Willett from the AVFD

 

The meeting agenda was devoted to discussion of the AVFD’s formal response to Les Fossel’s proposal to modify and expand the existing firehouse.   First, KP reported on the VFD’s business meeting of December 26, ’07, at which the following motion was passed by a vote of 14-3:

            “The AVFD recommends the construction of a new stand-alone fire station.   However, the AVFD would not turn down an addition to and renovation of the current building, which must meet all needs and codes.”

 

The summary of the discussion of this motion, as reported by KP is as follows:

            “The needs, codes, design and cost questions and concerns which the AVFD has of said proposed addition, that Les Fossel, of Alna, ME, presented on Aug. 1, 2007, will be put into a questionnaire, which the AVFD will draw up and present to the AFPC.   The AFPC will present this list to Les Fossel for his written answers.   These written answers must be brought back to the VFD for discussion and approval.   Said answers must meet the approval of the AVFD.”

 

The questionnaire referred to above was handed out to those present at the meeting.   It deals with 30 specific concerns, and a copy is attached to these minutes.   The rest of the committee’s meeting was devoted to a clarifying discussion of the concerns and associated questions of cost and feasibility.   On the basis of this discussion, the following conclusions seem warranted and important:

  1. For reasons of safety, the VFD considers it essential that the equipment bays and other spaces on the ground floor any firehouse be on a single level. [The Fossel proposal had the new bays several feet lower than the existing ones.]
  2. Because of anticipated problems with the exit and entrance of vehicles, snow removal and water drainage, the VFD considers a two-level apron between the firehouse and the Golden Ridge Rd., with a retaining wall separating the levels, to be unacceptable.   [This is clearly linked to #1.   Solving implies a solution to the other.]
  3. For similar reasons to those in #2, the VFD believes that the face of the renovated station facing the Golden Ridge Rd. should be flush and be no nearer the Rd than the existing face.
  4. The specific costing questions found in the 30 concern areas are designed to elicit a refined cost estimate for the overall project rather than to require a concern-by-concern cost estimate from Les Fossel.

 

The committee agreed to meet on January 14th to consider the content and timing of a public information meeting.   It is possible that such a meeting will be scheduled for later this month.   NC noted that the 2008 Town Meeting ahs been rescheduled to March 29th. The meeting adjourned at 9 p.m.

 

Cliff Russell

 

Attachment:   AVFD Questions on the Les Fossel Proposal for Extension and Renovation of Existing Firehouse. Dated February 1, 2008 .

 

 

 

The Alna Facilities Building Committee has asked the Alna Volunteer Fire Department to

formulate questions for the committee to present to Les Fossel for his written explanations regarding his proposal, dated Aug 1, 2007, for an addition onto the existing Alna Fire Station

 

In the interest of acquiring a facility that meets the current and future needs of both the Town of Alna and the Alna Volunteer Fire Department, certain standards for efficiently designed fire stations need to be met in any new building project.   New projects need to be well designed so as not to perpetuate negative aspects of the existing building or create new problems.   We are trying to plan for well into the future (50 years or so) so the town won’t have to address this again in the near term.

 

In order to properly determine if the required specifications have been met, approved architectural drawings must be submitted (and ultimately approved by the State Fire Marshall’s Office) before acceptance of any estimate or design can be considered.   This includes elevation drawings (front, back and side).

 

 

Our questions and concerns are the following:

 

  1. In order to safely perform work on the fire trucks, equipment or hose beds, there must be sufficient ceiling height/headroom to stand upright on the trucks while parked in the station bays.   There must be hazard-free access to the upper portion of the apparatus.    The existing bays do not meet this requirement even on the smallest of the current three trucks.   This would require a minimum of 7’ of space above the tallest truck.

* In the proposal is this height allowance taken into account for the existing bays?

* How would you design headroom space in the current bays to allow for this needed       height requirement?  

* What would the cost be to do this?