Bureau to build new fire station on own land

The Bureau of Reclamation has selected its site for a new fire station.

Bureau of Reclamation officials announced Friday that it will build its 21,500-square-foot fire station near the intersection of B Street and Highway 155.

The site, which was the bureau’s preferred site, is on land already owned by the federal government and is outside the west administration/industrial gate area.

A second site considered, managed by the National Park Service, was in the Crescent Bay area.

The announcement came after the bureau had completed its environmental assessment period and the project was declared to make no significant impact.

The purpose of the overall project is to relocate the bureau’s fire station from its present site at the John W. Keys III Pump Generating Plant.

The building will provide space for sleeping, dining, vehicle and equipment storage, meeting and training rooms, offices and a public reception area.

The Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact were prepared in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act and are available at the bureau’s web site at http://www.usbr.gov/pn/programs/ea/wash/firestation.

The idea to move the fire station was in accordance with plans to later upgrade the pumping-generating plant.

After that plant had been closed down for repairs and cleaning following a fire in 2013, the need became more apparent, officials said.

After the fire, engines were housed at a new machine shop near the Third Powerhouse until repairs were complete, and on-call firefighters stayed in local motels.

The proposed new site is within the city limits of Grand Coulee.

There was no report of when the fire station would be built.