A building soon to withstand hurricane-force winds of 165 mph — a new and improved West Manatee Fire Rescue Station 4 at 407 67th St. West, Bradenton — is underway.
WMFR commissioners met Oct. 29 and voted 3-1-1 to enter a $2,503,545 contract with NDC Construction Company of Bradenton for the rebuild. Commission Chair David Bishop abstained. Commissioner Al Robinson voted no.
The total cost of the project — beginning with the demolition of the existing 7,500 square-foot building — is at $2,819,545 million with $150,122 in related costs and a design contract inked earlier this year, according to Chief Tom Sousa.
Commission Vice Chair Randy Cooper said he expects the existing structure to be torn down by the end of November.
Sousa agreed, adding he expects the project will take six months “from start to finish.”
One of improvements in the new Station 4 emphasized by Sousa and Cooper is a better-designed apparatus bay.
They said all district vehicles — five fire trucks and a command SUV — could be housed together in the new building’s central area.
Cooper said the enlarged apparatus bay will enable WMFR to protect the district and its equipment in the event of flooding at two other stations — one in Cortez and another in Holmes Beach. Station 4 is at a higher elevation, he added.
According to NDC, the new 9,617 square feet building will cost $234 per square foot.
WMFR architect Daryl Krumsieg, of Wannemacher Jensen Architects Inc. of St. Petersburg, told the commissioners, “We’re getting a lot of building for the money.”
Krumsieg described the project as a slab on grade with steel supports, masonry and brick walls and a low-slope commercial roof.
Although it will not be LEED-certified, the building will incorporate low-maintenance, sustainable materials designed to reduce energy costs, such as bamboo and other wood products, he said.
Plans call for eight dorms and four bathrooms with individual showers.
Windows will resist a 2 x 4 canon shot of 55 mph, according to NDC principal Ron Allen.
“It is as strong of a building as you can build today,” he said.
The commissioners also voted 4-1 to approve a $2 million loan to finance the project. Robinson voted no on the financing.
Asked for his reasons for voting against both the financing and the contract, he replied, “West Manatee, approximately four years ago, had a consultant tell them that this building could be remodeled for $1 million.”
He said the district “never considered” the remodel plan “in lieu of what it’s doing now.”
The additional price tag of $1.5 to $2-million is for aesthetics, according to Robinson.
“When you tell the public one thing and do another, I’m a ‘no’ vote,” he said.
Built in 1961, Station 4 has undergone five remodels, one in the late 1990s for about $150,000. It was built as an all-volunteer facility without private showers — before the days of a co-ed workforce, Commissioner George Harris pointed out.
At present, between four and eight firefighters live and work out of Station 4. The fire district has 42 career employees and 30 reservists.
Sousa said WMFR has been working with the design-build team for the past six months.
WMFR Battalion Chief Chris Kiernan is the project manager and he is expected to liaison with the commissioners and the chief.
During the construction, Station 4’s fire trucks will be dispersed to WMFR’s two other stations and its personnel will live and work out of the administration building, 6417 Third Ave. W., Bradenton, Sousa said.