Construction of a new fire-rescue station for Chancellor

Right now, the county is waiting to acquire land for a new fire and rescue station for Chancellor on State Route 3 until the state reviews number of calls and response times to determine the best location for a new station. The payment will come from the 2001 bond referendum. There is about $7.1 million left.

Design for this station started in July 2005.

Gary Skinner’s challenger, D.J. McGuire, told me the other day that he hopes VRE does not become the only issue in this race. He says the Lee Hill District doesn’t have a fire and rescue station and it should. Fire and Rescue Chief Chris Eudailey identified the Lee Hill area for a new station. It is unclear when it will be built.

Should the $7.1 million go to replacing the station on State Route 3 or to building a new station in the Lee Hill District?

Post tags: fire and rescue station

Permalink: http://news.fredericksburg.com/spotsygovt/2009/08/27/construction-of-a-new-firerescue-station-for-chancellor/

oedipusrx

The Lee Hill station should be constructed first. While Fire Company 5 needs replaced, its building is better than what the Lee Hill district has. Three stations are within the current boundaries of the Berkeley district, two each in the Livingston and Salem districts, and one each in the Battlefield, Courtland, and Chancellor districts. Looks Lee Hill is under protected — especially eastern Spotsy county.

What is being done with the old Fire Company 4 and Rescue Company 4 buildings? Sale of these facilities should give the county additional money towards the construction or outfitting of fire/rescue stations.
lgross

and coverage areas?

is doing this by district better than having a
process that looks at response times and service
areas?

are we talking about Fire Coverage or Ambulance,
advanced life support also, etc?

at any rate.. what I support is benchmarks and
prioritization based on data – and not politics.

If we had such a process and followed it.. this
would be primarily an administrative issue and
not a political one.

right?
oedipusrx

You can see it via the Spotsy Interactive Map/GIS systems (off county homepage). You need to select “Fire-Rescue Station” and “First Responder” zones. The maps are a little dated — Fire1 and Rescue1 in separate buildings — but still workable. You’ll notice that Rt3 from I-95 to Elys Ford has more stations/coverage than a similar physical areas around 4 Mile Fork.

Also, Co4 has responsibility for I-95 which can convolutes the situation.

Another still unresolved issue is Co4 needing an aerial/tower truck to cover the numreous multi-story buildings (CapOne bldgs, new hospital, hotels, office parks, etc) in its area.
MAVRICKinc

The new fire station will be constructed in Lee’s Hill.

Fire and Rescue Chief Cris Eudailey is on record that should there be a spill of ethanol, being transported out of BOWMAN project site, Rt 2 and just across the train tracks would take him and emergency vehicles 28 minutes to get to any spill of ethanol into the invironment.

With Tricord champing at the bit to bring back the construction of 5,900 (Summit Crossing) and probably more homes (high density mandates) at the intersection of the VRE train Station (Rt 17 and Benchmark). The underground piping and utility lines have already been layed, and buried on the Benchmark side of the Rt 17.

Doesn’t leave much to the imagination since the construction started years ago. Without it, CSX and VRE could not be move ahead with their capital improvements agendas. Without VRE, Skinner, Carter and Cosner would be SOL.

When the cost of infrastructure hits the fan you will better understand what really goes on behind closed doors.

Please, put consiracy theories or the mantel of paranoia aside. They no longer work to the advantange of those who would have you believe otherwise.

The devil continues to be in the details and the fine print. YOU can sign on to anything you like. My money is still on the truth, whether you like it or not.

The details are public knowledge. All YOU have to do is engage the system, ask simple questions and demand an answer.

It’s still your right, UNLESS you assigned that right away, by proxy, to those who would do your your thinking for you. No hassles, no additional stresses, except for the outcome. Your legacy in life will always be about how far you’re allowed to go, in business, your level of accomplishment and somone elses idea of what you’re worth on the open market.

I’ll conclude my pontifications, but only for the moment. If anyone should ask, I already know and confess to being the pompous ass, but at least I’m willing to admit it when others will not.

You don’t have to be concerned with a perception, just read the facts and draw your own conclusions.

The rattling sabres you hear in the back ground are just another version,of yet another truth.

Let the games begin.
lgross

access to mine road thence to benchmark?

this is why I was asking about service areas…

does the new station include Lee’s Hill… Bowman,
Benchmark in it’s service area or is that handled by
another station – which one?
lgross

http://www.spotsylvania.va.us/departments/finance/budget/index.cfm?id=7834

looks like Lee’s Hill was planned for 2012/13… which.. perhaps I’m wrong.. but if Tricord
started turning dirt tomorrow .. for homes/VRE.. the fire station probably remain on a
parallel track… and come online about the same time the other stuff did….

I’m a little surprised at the cost estimate.. about half a million.. I would have though it
would be much more…

As far as development in the Lee’s Hill area.. we know this… that even the Silver
Companies had so much trouble getting credit that they had to ask the county to change
a CDA to a SSD…

the conventional wisdom seems to be that -that hospital will need a new interchange.. and
that the only realistic way to get it – from a funding perspective (assuming they get FHWA
approval – not a sure thing much less a timely thing)… at any rate.. assume they get
permission.. where is the county going to get 50 million dollars? Well.. not from VDOT…
and unless and until the credit market recovers.. not from private equity sources….

that would leave the county with having to think about another SSD.. which has also been
discussed… if I recall….

Now…. since C500 has scheduled a candidate forum… and both Skinner and DJ have
agreed to come.. that issue would be an excellent one to ask to get the opinions and
thoughts of the candidates on how that interchange might get funded….

that question alone..might be worth showing up to listen…
oedipusrx

The new Fire/Rescue 4 station does not have direct access to Benchmark Rd. To me, direct access means the station is on Mine Rd (like the old Fire Co 4 building). The most direct route to Benchmark from the new F/R 4 station is Clay St to Falcon Dr to Mine Rd to Benchmark.

Unfortunately, Mine Rd in that area is 2 lane and difficult to pass/pull-over and the trains can slow response. I’ve seen both the Mine Rd and Lansdowne Rd crossings simultaneous blocked by trains.

Almost half of the area covered by the 4 Mile Fork station is on the other side of the CSX railway lines. That area includes the new-to-be built ethanol transfer station, Shannon airport, and both of the county’s sewage treatment plants.

Looking at the CIP, the new Lee Hill station won’t be built until 2015.
lgross

yes.. I got the build date wrong.. and that CIP
shows a 5+ million cost.. and something about
using funds originally intended for Salem Church?
???

did not understand that..

give the rail block issue.. is the site for the Lee’s
Hill on the EAST side of the rail?

are there no FS/EMS east of the rail right now?

if true.. wouldn’t that tend to argue for some
facility east and north of the prospective VRE
station?

re direct access…

direct road access… but this goes back to the
time required to respond and whether than is an
acceptable number or not…

I would think that FD/RS facilities in terms of
running areas and site locations would “work” a
little like schools.. in terms of having defined
running areas.. that shift and change when new
ones come online…

who and/or what process… deals with the running
areas when new/better/more capable facilities
come online?

who looks at the running areas with an eye
towards optimizing them in terms of run time
responses?
oedipusrx

No, there aren’t any county fire/rescue facilities east of the tracks. Since the tracks are elevated in downtown, the city’s downtown fire station would be able to cover the Tidewater Trail corridor if the Mine and Lansdowne road crossings are blocked.

The last I heard, the county wanted a site near the intersection of Mills Dr (US-17Byp) and Benchmark Rd — basically at/in the industrial park with the VRE yard. That would put it east of the tracks and with good access to several major roads in the area. Plus, Mills Dr has a bridge over the train tracks so it could cover the hospital & Cosners Corner area.

I haven’t followed this as closely as I used to since I no longer live off Tidewater Trail (but still own that home).

Back in the New Post days, Tricord proffered a parcel next to the wood preserver plant near Ruffins Pond. I believe the county felt that location was too east given the area’s population at the time.

Yes, you’d assume the county would shift the coverage zone as new stations are brought online. Heck, I could see the coverage areas changing depending on time of day and a station’s crew makeup. I’d assume it’s Eudailey’s jobs (or a subordinate thereof) to determine the coverage areas.
lgross

http://www2.newsadvance.com/lna/news/local/arti
cle/firefighter_involved_in_spotsylvania_lawsuit_fe
els_actions_were_justified/19038/

I had forgotten all about it but it was quite a
deal.

it got dredged back up through an incident in
Lynchburg involving ex CA Kimball Payne.

http://www2.newsadvance.com/lna/news/local/arti
cle/city_manager_was_sued_in_1998_spotsylvania
_free-speech_complaint/19039/

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Construction of a new fire-rescue station for Chancellor