Councilmembers prefer to maintain two fire stations

by Dan Holland

Feb. 17 council work session

Members of Broadview Heights City Council participated in a work session to discuss the pros and cons of building a proposed $14-million fire station and headquarters on city campus using a combination of grant money and city funds.

A charter amendment ballot issue failed at the polls in May 2022, which would have increased the fire and EMS levy in the city to build a proposed 24,350-square-foot, $11.5-million station and headquarters. 

Under the proposal, Station No. 1, located at 3591 Wallings Rd., would remain open and be renovated, while Station No. 2, at 9455 Broadview Rd., would be razed.

Ward 3 Council Representative Brian Dunlap, a retired Broadview Heights firefighter, spoke against the proposal, citing manpower and operations as the most important cost factors for the fire department. He also suggested the possibility of building a third satellite station at the south end of the city near New Haven/MacIntosh Farms.

“I won’t be supporting voting to spend the taxpayers’ money on this,” said Dunlap. “Not because the price per square foot is too high, and I can’t agree with today’s fees and everything else. It’s that, but I think it’s more, so how are we going to pay for what the fire department needs overall? I think this needs to be rethought, and I think the parties need to get together and redo this whole concept of where we’re going.”

Ward 2 Council Representative Brian Wolf spoke in favor of the proposal, saying the current fire stations do not have hot, warm and cold zones needed to keep carcinogens and other contaminants separate from living quarters. He also noted that training rooms and restrooms included in the plan for a new station could be utilized during community events.

“This is a community building; It’s not just a fire station,” said Wolf. “And I fully support it.”

Ward 1 Council Representative Tom Pavlica noted how a number of features for the proposed station, including training rooms, a training tower and a number of bedrooms had been removed from the plan to reduce the project cost, but now seem to have been re-included. He added that, given the age of Fire Station 1, which opened in 1963, the possibility of the structure being condemned at some future point could potentially leave residents in the north end of the city without a local station.

“I know Station 1 is badly needed to be refurbished or something, so I’d like to have some type of a guarantee on the books that both stations will be addressed; not just one,” said Pavlica. “I would support some concrete information documentation that we are going to do something to Station 1 and start setting money [aside] for it. But I’ve always felt that we do need a new station, and I’m very supportive of that.”

Councilperson Glenn Goodwin, who attended all four public meetings on the proposed station conducted by Mayor Sam Alai and Fire Chief Jeff Hajek, said he felt there were discrepancies in what was proposed from meeting to meeting. He also said he would like to see a plan for the new station and remaining station tied together.

“We need to do both stations, and it needs to be presented as a package, because we also, in addition to examining the fire station, have to deal with meeting all the needs within the entire city,” said Goodwin. “All it is, is giving us a bigger facility, but it’s not improving the safety for our residents. I think when we go out, we can’t just address one little need. We need to address everything in itself, including the safety of the residents, because that’s why we’re here.”

Councilperson Joe Price said he had asked Fire Chief Jeff Hajek to come back to him with a plan last September for a new station in the $8-million price tag range. He cited examples of new fire stations being built in Northeast Ohio, including a $9-million, 15,000-square-foot station in Strongsville and a $9.5-million, 16,800-square-foot station in Akron.

“What I have a problem with is, to date, no member of council has received a probable cost for this project,” said Price. “I promise you the architect has a probable cost sheet. What we were told three weeks ago in this room was this is going to be between 20,000 and 25,000 square feet. Which is it? Are we going to pay $14 million for 20,000 square feet or are we going to pay $14 million for 25,000 square feet?”

Price recommended assembling an ad hoc committee to review the situation. He said the $14 million should be spent on building two new fire stations.

“After listening to some of my colleagues … it is clear that this is not going to pass the way it is presented,” said Councilperson Jennifer Mahnic. “So, we’re going to have to do something about it or it’s not going to happen.”

Mahnic supported forming an ad hoc committee or having a safety committee plan developed to address the need. “Maybe the architect needs to come in and talk with us and share with them our concerns and see what modifications can be made,” she said. “And we obviously need a probable cost sheet immediately.”

Council President Robert Boldt referred back to the fire levy issue failing at the polls in 2022. He cited the main reasons for the issue going down as location, size and a tax increase. He said that he and Pavlica would like to see a future charter amendment that would guarantee the presence of two fire stations in the city.

“We need two fire stations, and we need two plans,” said Boldt. “Let’s just do it in one package and be done with it. That way, nobody feels they were left behind. Because, right now on the table, you’re only satisfying one need.”Alai added that Station 1 will remain open as long as he is mayor. He said that forming a new ad hoc committee on the topic would be “another bait-and-switch to kick this can down the road.” He urged councilmembers to take a vote on the fire station proposal at the Feb. 24 council meeting.