WAUSAU, WI (WSAU) — Officials with Miron Construction and the city of Wausau held a ceremonial groundbreaking for a new fire station on the city’s west side Wednesday.
“This project has been in the works for over a decade,” said Fire Chief Tracey Kujawa. “To bring it to fruition and get it off the ground, to give our community and department a facility that is workable and functional is exciting for all of us.”
She says that means finally having enough space to store all the equipment needed on the west side, including a ladder truck. “The [previous] station was built for 1970 trucks, not 2010 or 2020 models. [Nowadays] they are much bigger, taller, and wider. This facility accounts for all of that.”
That also means for the first time the Fire Department will be able to house a ladder truck on the west side, something she said had been negatively impacting the city’s ISO rating. “We are an ISO 2 right now, and ISO 1 is a first-class city. Obviously, we are striving for that ISO rating of 1.”
Kujawa says, in the long run, a better ISO rating combined with accreditation could drive down the cost of homeowners, business, and renters insurance for residents.
In addition to four equipment bays, the new station will offer better accommodations for the firefighters including locker rooms, training areas, kitchen space, and living quarters.
The new facility is located at 3017 Seymour Lane, just blocks from the current station.
Kujawa says the city will be oriented facing the Highway 52 Parkway, with median access put in to allow them to begin their emergency response on the highway instead of in the nearby residential neighborhood.
The $5 million facility was approved as part of the 2019 budgeting process.
Excavation on the site begins next Monday with the goal of having the structure enclosed before the snow flys this winter. As it stands the anticipated move-in date is April 1st, 2020.
