The Brownwood City Council is expected to decide on Tuesday where to build the new, larger Central Fire Station based on research by an architect and the recommendation of a committee looking into the project. The committee will recommend the corner of East Chandler and Congress Avenue for the new location – north of the Lehnis Railroad Museum and behind the Red Cross building where RV hookups are located.
According to the city’s briefing sheet, architectural firm Brown Reynolds & Waterford provided an analysis of two possible locations to be considered for the new fire station including the E. Chandler/Congress corner and the existing fire station location of Austin Avenue/Main Street. The sheet states that other locations considered were eliminated for a variety of reason.
The committee will recommend the E. Chandler/Congress corner because the city currently owns that land and there will be minimal cost for clearing and site preparation. The briefing sheet states that the existing location at Main and Austin was eliminated because of the need to acquire additional property, close a portion of Booker Street, and to remove the fire station from a high traffic corner to eliminate accessibility and safety issues. Building at a new location would also eliminate the need for temporary relocation of firefighters during the construction process. If the location is approved, the existing site will be sold, placing it on the tax rolls, according to the briefing sheet.
The Brownwood City Council is set to vote on the new location at their meeting on Tuesday morning.
Preliminary cost from the architectural firm is estimated to be $2,950,000 to build the new fire station. The project will be funded from certificates of obligation that were approved by city council on May 22, 2012 for capital projects to improve city facilities and infrastructure.
Click Here for the full agenda for Tuesday’s Brownwood City Council meeting.
