Rockville Centre residents voted aagainst the $21 million Fire Department bond to rehab two of its firehouses, totaling 2,147 votes to 678.
Rockville Centre Fire Department officials wanted to close down Hose Company No. 1 on South Centre Avenue, merge its volunteers with , then raze the firehouse at 103 Maple Ave. — Eureka Hook, Ladder and Bucket Company No. 1 — and rebuild it. The reason, fire officials said, is because the buildings have fallen into disrepair.
The $21 million bond would also pay to renovate headquarters, and relocate the fire inspector's office to the firehouse on Maple Avenue.
Rockville Centre fire chief John Bushing said he was disappointed in the results, but will work to come up with other ways to make the needed renovations at department firehouses.
"Life goes on and we'll have to come up with something that is more acceptable to the residents of Rockville Centre," Bushing said. "We have to come up with alternatives. We'll be working on that now that we know where we stand and come up with a Plan B."
Research building costs: A 2-story firehouse costs, on average, $200/sq ft to build in the NY Metropolitan area. A 2-story firehouse with a footprint of 200'x100', or 40,000 sq ft should cost between $8M and $9M. IMO, you could build two brand new firehouses and still spend less than $21 million. As seen on election day, many residents agree as well. Consider Renovation and Rehabilitation: What is the current punchlist of outstanding repairs for the firehouses in question? How does the outstanding repairs/retrofit coincide with compliance to NFPA 1 Uniform Fire Code and NFPA 1500 Fire Department Occupational Safety and Health Program section A.9? Repair/retrofit costs rarely exceed construction costs, even with trending for obsolescence. Please provide those numbers to the community.
Relax! In all fariness to the Fire Dept and the Village, I received a missive in the mail not long ago detailing the proposition. Additionally, the entire program is on the web. http://www.rvcny.us/new/RVCFD%20Bond%20Proposal.pdf This should be what you re asking for. Read it and come back with your opinion/suggestions. I mean that sincerely. Having said that, it is a shame the bond was rejected. The repairs and updates are surely needed. But, as we all know, most are tired of being taxed to death. Perhaps when times are better again, and taxes are brought under control,a new bond can be floated and approved. In the meantime, thank you neighbors for manning our volunteer fire department.
In addition, the state of "disrepair" as cited in the proposal is not beyond repair. Actually, with minor upgrades to electrical service, new windows, doors, some re-pointing of brickwork, the buildings would be well within standards of any fire service. Please note these are brink buildings. the city of NY has Firehouses still in use today over 100 years in age. As for handicap access, that may be an issue; However, since able-bodied men and women are to staff the Firehouses, not sure to what extend every area of the building must be handicap-accessible. Maybe an office and one bathroom? Can"t see that costing more than $21 million. As i wrote before, we need a punch list for repairs. Add those costs up and present them to the community.
The postings cited areas in need of repair, but did not list the costs to repair/replace. Punch lists are specific; they accurately define the problem and the solution, with costs. What I'm looking for is: Punch list Cost examples: Brick Repointing $ 5,000 new roof $30,000 new windows $30,000 new doors $30,000 new 300 amp $6,000 electrical service Handicap $10,000 Bath Handicap $5,000 ramp I believe the repair costs would be several millions less than building new. let's see those numbers.