New Smith River Fire Station
Artist's rendering of new Smith River Fire Station #1 and Headquarters building.
Current Status:
Construction of the structural aspects of the new fire station is expected to be completed in late fall of this year. This includes the installation of 14ft-by-14ft apparatus bay doors, new exterior access doors, and windows. (photo at below)
Structural elements that define the apparatus bay doors.
Especially noticeable is the façade of the building, which required structural changes to the roof and includes a signboard identifying the building. (See photo at below.)
Construction of the sign board
Interior work includes replacing the apparatus bay floor with 8” of concrete to support the weight of water-carrying vehicles, as well as drain plumbing to accommodate a decontamination station (for returning firefighters) and equipment for decontamination of personal protective equipment (“turnouts”).
The work underway is expected to make it possible to vacate the existing fire station later this year or early next, however much work remains to be done in future to complete the interior features of the new station.
Background:
Before 1967, the fire department was using a concrete-block structure on Haight Avenue owned by an outside party but dedicated to the use of the district. The building was formally acquired by the district in 1967.
In the same year, the current fire station was expanded from two truck bays, to four. The “architectural plans” for the building were a hand-drawn diagram showing the dimensions of the finished walls.
The building is now over 57 years old (the original parts are even older) and has served the community well in that time.
1967 Newspaper clipping showing expansion of the existing fire station on North Haight Avenue
However, the district has outgrown its headquarters station in several aspects:
The station is not up to the seismic standards of today. The San Fernando Earthquake of 1971 illustrated the danger to essential buildings, such as fire stations, and resulted in much stricter building codes. The prospect of having fire apparatus stranded in a collapsed building, when the need is greatest, is one the district would like to avoid.
Fire Apparatus has gotten bigger and heavier in the past several decades. And more numerous; our air-bottle refill station has been sitting outside in the elements for years due to lack of space. The size of the apparatus bays has become a limiting factor in replacing apparatus that has exceeded its useful life.
Safety requires the decontamination of personal protective equipment after calls; the current station does not have the septic capacity to install the required washing equipment. Nor does it have the space to provide for a “hot” zone for decontamination.
The existing station lacks sufficient parking for responding volunteers, or space to conduct weekly training drills. The Smith River Baptist Church has been gracious in allowing the district to use its parking area all these years, however certain training exercises are not feasible even in that space.
The amount of required expendable supplies carried on fire apparatus has grown over the decades. We have outgrown the amount of storage space needed to maintain necessary inventory.
Many volunteer departments have turned to “sleeper programs” to maintain adequate staffing and improve response times. The current station could never support such a program.
In December 2014, Smith River Fire Protection District embarked on a strategic planning process. Among many other items, the plan identified the need for a new fire station in Smith River to be able to serve the community for the next 50-plus years. The strategic plan was adopted by the Board of Directors in September 2015.
Property Acquisition:
Although important, replacing the existing building was not viewed as urgent in 2015. Nevertheless, board members began to look at alternatives which included building a second story on the existing building, expanding into other real estate in the immediate neighborhood, or building a station from the ground up. At the time, acquiring the “old” Ray’s Food Place was not being considered or even imagined.
C&K Markets, owner of the Ray’s Food Place chain of grocery stores, entered into Chapter 11 bankruptcy in November 2013. This resulted in the closure of some store locations, including the Smith River location which closed that year. As part of bankruptcy proceedings, C&K Markets attempted to sell the location. Many national chains looked at the property but concluded that it was either too large or too small to meet their needs. Without a buyer, the store remained vacant.
Finally, in late 2016, C&K offered the property to the Smith River Fire Protection District for about the price of a 4-bedroom home. Having spent the previous two years assessing alternatives for a new station, the Ray’s building presented a unique opportunity and “checked all the boxes” in terms of what the district was hoping to accomplish. The district engaged a local building contractor, and a local engineer/architect, to assess the cost of remodeling the building to meet the district’s needs. All indications were that the project was feasible. The district purchased the property on January 20, 2017.
Remodeling Project:
Remodeling a grocery store into a fire station was viewed by the district as a long-term project, and it has certainly lived up to that expectation. But the project has also provided some more immediate benefits; namely, space to conduct training drills and a secure landing zone for the air ambulance. Following is the chronology of milestones in the development project:
January 20, 2017: The purchase of the Rays property by the district was recorded.
September 6, 2017: Use Permit was granted.
January 3, 2018: The contract for architecture was granted to CH&D from Sacramento. CH&D has an impressive portfolio of fire station projects completed.
February to May, 2018: A citizens advisory committee was formed to work with the architect on the design of the new station.
June, 2019: The parking lot was made secure using concrete planter boxes. This permitted the district to utilize the lot as a landing zone in emergencies. It has come into use several times since.
May 28, 2020: A building permit was issued by the County of Del Norte.
December 10, 2020: The project was opened to competitive bidding (attempt #1). The project is considered a “Prevailing Wage” job, which greatly increases labor cost and the amount of project reporting required. Local contractors were advised of the bidding process.
June 14, 2022: The district engaged a cost-engineering firm to provide a detailed cost estimate of building plans. This has been used to scale the 6-phases into sub-projects that can be bid separately.
July 30, 2022: An asbestos surveying firm was hired to test the building for asbestos and lead hazards. The only hazard identified was the mastic used on the old roofing materials.
August 26, 2022: Bidding was opened for replacement of the building’s roof. A local bidder was selected at the October 2022 board meeting.
November 15, 2022: The new roof was completed in time to avoid damage to the building due to the onset of the winter rainy season.
April 28, 2023: A sub-project for just the structural parts of the project was put out to bid. Local contractors were advised of the bidding process. No bidders responded (attempt #2).
September 5, 2023: A slightly scaled back sub-project for structural work was put to bid (attempt #3). Local contractors were advised of the bidding process.
October 12, 2023: Broward Builders was the only bidder who responded to our third attempt. The district awarded the contract for the structural portions of the project that is currently on-going.
November, 2023: Broward Builders commenced work on the new building.
