Fire Department recommends building Central Fire Station at Emerald Knights

The Fire Department and the city's Animal Care and Control Division have decided where they want their new facilities built.

The Fire Department is recommending to the City Council that the city build its new $22-plus-million Central Fire Station on the 700 block of First Avenue SE, which is the block that, in part, once housed the Emerald Knights Drum & Bugle Corps.

Meanwhile, the city's Animal Care and Control Division is recommending to the council that the city's new animal shelter operation be built at a site on 76

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Avenue SW on the Kirkwood Community College campus.

Citizen advisory groups earlier selected three site options for each facility, and Ryan Companies US Inc., the project manager for the construction projects, has conducted a cost analysis for each of the sites.

A similar process was used in the site selection of the city's new library, which will be built in the 400 block of Fourth Avenue SE on a site now occupied by TrueNorth Companies. The city's library board, though, recommended a different site, a recommendation that the council did not follow.

The council will vote Tuesday on the Fire Department and Animal Care and Control Division recommendations.

Mayor Ron Corbett has said he supports both of the recommendations.

In a memorandum to the council from Fire Chief Stephen Reid, Reid states that the Fire Department is recommending the Emerald Knights site, in part, because it is “likely” the least-cost option among the three sites. The site also meets all the criteria for a new station, including topography and accessibility to main thoroughfares, the chief states.

Ryan Companies' figures estimate that building the fire station will cost $22.6 million on the Emerald Knights site compared to $23.2 million to build it in the 600 block of First Avenue NE and $25.7 million to build it in the 600 block of First Avenue SE.

In her memorandum to the council, Diane Webber, who heads up the city's Animal Care and Control Division, said her department is recommending the Kirkwood site after a review of the cost analysis each of the three sites.

The Ryan figures estimate the cost to build the facility at the Kirkwood site at $7.7 million compared to $7.54 million for a site on Bell Drive SW south of Highway 30 and west of C Street SW and $7.86 million for a site at 16

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Avenue SW and Jacolyn Drive SW.

However, the estimated cost to purchase the Kirkwood site is lowest of the three, $700,000 compared to $750,000 for the Bell Drive SW site and $1 million for the 16

Mayor Corbett this week said the city is continuing to negotiate with the Linn County Board of Supervisors about some kind of joint operation of the animal shelter, which he said could have some impact on the size of the new facility.

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Avenue SW one, according to Ryan's estimates.