FORNEY, Texas — The Forney City Council received an update on the proposed Fire Station No. 2 at their Tuesday, June 16, 2015, meeting.
FORNEY, Texas — The Forney City Council received an update on the proposed Fire Station No. 2 at their Tuesday, June 16, 2015, meeting.
Representatives from Speed FabCrete presented the update and a proposed development schedule.
The station will take approximately nine months to build, according to the representative, and will be approximately 11,500-square feet with approximately 4,000-square foot of the overall build for a three-lane, drive-thru equipment bay.
Currently, the design of the station is at approximately 75-percent completion, the rep stated, and with a notice to proceed they should be able to submit for permit review by July 24, 2015, and receive their permits and being construction on August 12, 2015.
The station will be built on a 4.330-acre tract of land on Reeder Lane next to the Silver Springs senior living community. The land which the station will be built on was conveyed to the city by Meadow Ridge Farm, LP, the developer of the Gateway Bridge development area, in September 2014.
The total build for the station is expected to be in the $3 million range, according to Forney City Manager Brian Brooks. Funding for the build was provided for by the issuance of certificates of obligation.
A new road is planned to be built from Reeder Lane, next to the fire station, to connect to Gateway Boulevard.
Council member Mary Penn suggested the road be named in honor of Red Whaley who was the original antique pioneer in Forney, Texas, and also donated a substantial sum of money to complete the construction of the District 6 Forney Fire Department Substation on Windy Lane in Forney, Texas. Whaley was also a former firefighter and battalion chief for the City of Irving.
The fire station will likely be initially staffed by three firefighters per shift, according to Forney Fire Department Chief Rick Townsend. Central station, which is located near downtown Forney, will be staffed at four firefighters per shift.
The fire department has also requested a Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) grant to hire additional firefighters. The department previously received a $739,000 grant from the program in 2012 to hire six additional firefighters. Notifications of the grant awards will be made in late July.
If all goes as planned, the station is anticipated to have a substantial completion date of May 10, 2016.
