Putting behind ideas about renting space for the long term, members of the West Manatee Fire Rescue Commission voted to move forward on a new administrative building that could double as a west side emergency operations center.
After a presentation from landscape architect and planner Bob Gause of Gause and Associates of Palmetto, the commission decided May 21 in two unanimous votes to pursue building options and research two parcels:
• A 1.88-acre vacant parcel at 701 63rd Street W., Bradenton, south of Manatee Avenue, next to the Bealls and adjacent to Hidden Lake, and
• A 0.65-acre parcel with a building, formerly used as a dental office, which would need to be demolished, at 6607 Third Ave. W., near WMFR’s Station 1 at 407 67th St. W.
The commission appointed Chief Tom Sousa and Commissioner Randy Cooper April 1 to select sites and negotiate a contract for a new building. Sousa selected Gause to perform due diligence for the selected sites.
The district is looking to construct a 5,000-square-foot building with parking. The two possible sites were winnowed from four parcels presented in the Gause report.
Commissioner Larry Jennis said he liked the 1.88-acre parcel.
Commissioner George Harris agreed, saying “the bigger the better” and that he liked the access to large parking lots in the adjacent outdoor mall.
Drawbacks to the Bradenton 63rd Street property include no direct access to sewer services and the need to change existing R-1 zoning, according to the Gause report.
Commission Chair David Bishop favored continued research on both sites, noting the proximity of the 0.65-acre abandoned office site to Station 1.
Issues for the office site include removing the existing structure, ponding and setbacks if considered by Manatee County as a public use facility.
Two possible sites were taken off the table — at the King Tennis Court Annex, 808 75th St. NW, and Palma Sola Presbyterian Church property, 6510 Third Ave. W., according to Gause and Administrative Battalion Chief Ben Rigney.
WMFR staff and Gause initially viewed the King Middle School site a top choice because of its central location and suitability for staging and storing emergency vehicles. But after a workshop with Manatee County School District staff, the district determined selling the property was “not in its best interest,” Rigney said.
The church property was deemed unsuitable after factoring in building-setback limitations.
Commissioner George Harris said he was discouraged by the few choices and liked the King property because it would have allowed WMFR to build a hardened building that could accommodate EMS and rescue boats that need higher clearance.
Commissioner Randy Cooper said, “We live in an off-the- rack world,” adding the choice will never be “100 % ideal.”
Robinson, who previously opposed the idea of a westside EOC and favored continuing to rent administrative offices, changed his position after Derrick Warner of Palma Sola Park spoke about his work as a former Illinois fire captain in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in August 2005.
An Illinois contingent of 575 firefighters, EMS and other personnel, along with 100 fire trucks, joined rescue workers from New York, Maryland and other states, and built a staging area on an 18-acre site for disaster relief.
“With the storm they had in New Orleans, they lost every fire station,” Warner said, adding only a few trucks and five fire chiefs from the city were part of the effort because the rest of the department personnel lost their homes.
“They sent us for a week and 45 days later they let us go home,” he added.
Warner also warned that he’s heard a hurricane “is not a matter of if, but when” from a Federal Emergency Management Agency official taking the temperature of the Gulf of Mexico in the area.
At the end of the meeting, Robinson pointed to Warner and apologized for previous remarks against the need for a hardened facility.
The commissioners’ motion to pursue the two sites included direction to staff to contact the owners of the properties near Bealls and Station 1, determine the specific costs and prepare an analysis for the commissioners.
WMFR will meet at 6 p.m. Tuesday, June 18, at its temporary headquarters of the Palma Sola Presbyterian Church, 6510 Third Ave. W., Bradenton.