Fire Station Seismic Rehab Well under Way
The Seismic Rehab to all four of the District’s stations is going well and progressing faster than first anticipated. This work is made possible through a grant program offered by the State of Oregon.
The grants are awarded by the State to schools and essential emergency service structures to bring them up to current seismic code standards to increase the survivability rate during a seismic event. The structural upgrades will greatly increase our ability to retain use of our equipment and structures after a seismic event. The District applied for the grants in September of 2016 and was awarded four grants in April of 2017. One grant was awarded for each of the four stations totaling 2.14 million dollars. These are non-matching grants, therefore there is little cost to the District for the engineering and re-construction of the stations. The District has a two year window to complete the projects and financial commitment to the grant program. After performing a bid and selection process Andy Medcalf Construction was awarded the bid to oversee and perform the construction while the architecture and engineering aspects were awarded to RSS Architecture.
Construction started on the Marion, Mehama and Elkhorn stations the first part of April and on the Stayton Station May 21st, immediately following the May Volunteer’s Breakfast. All for stations are receiving different levels of construction to bring them to current seismic building code.
The Elkhorn Station has progressed the fastest of all the stations. Most of the construction to reinforce the building and stabilize the propane tank has been completed and is in the finishing stages. The building had to have new tie downs installed in the walls reinforcing the buildings connection to the foundation. The propane tank had to be re-set on a new foundation and secured to that foundation with tie down straps.
The Mehama Station is receiving the second most extensive and complex construction upgrades including new foundation under the building, large tie down rods in the walls, and a new steel portal frame around one of the apparatus bay doors to reinforce the structure. The project is about 50% complete.
The Marion Station is the most extensive and complex construction project of all four. It is receiving new foundation under the building, new wood framing replacing the CMU block walls, new ADA compliant bathroom, kitchen, training room and new metal roof. This rehab will have the most noticeable difference of all the projects. The inside of the building, as well as the structure itself, will have the most visible change when completed. Construction is about 60% complete.
Although the Stayton Station is newer, therefore requiring less work to bring it to current codes, there will still be reinforcing work to the structure. The District will also be conducting several other projects in conjunction with the seismic project. The District will be doing a lighting upgrade and replacing the main sections of the fire sprinkler system. The funds for the sprinkler system are from the 2015 Bond Measure which the District has been holding until the seismic construction started. This way the District can take advantage of the seismic construction work to make the sprinkler work less expensive, making the overall cost of the project cheaper for the tax payers. The District is doing the same with the lighting upgrade, taking advantage of seismic construction to make the lighting project cheaper. The current florescent lighting is being replaced with LED lighting which takes about 66% less energy and should pay for itself in about 3 years. The funds for the lighting project are coming from the District’s Building Reserve Fund.
All work is scheduled to be complete by the end of September 2018.
