Bureau fire station to be built next year

The Bureau of Reclamation’s new fire station will be built early in 2017, an official said Monday.

Public Affairs Officer Lynne Brougher said current plans call for construction to start early in 2017, and that it would take about a year to construct the 21,500-square-foot facility.

The bureau announced in mid-December that the fire facility would be built on land it already owns, near the intersection of B Street and State Route 155.

The bureau made the announcement after an environmental assessment was completed recently.

The purpose of the overall project is to relocate the agency’s fire equipment from the John W. Keys III Pump-Generating Plant to the new location.

The new fire hall will provide space for sleeping and dining for full-time personnel, and equipment storage, as well as meetings, training and office rooms. A public reception area is also planned.

The Bureau had proposed three alternatives. One was to locate the fire facility on land managed by the National Park Service at Crescent Bay. The other alternative was to do nothing.