New fire department location faces community opposition

Photo courtesy of Fire Chief Robert Rymer.

Athens City Council is gearing up for a big challenge on the ballot for the May primary with a new fire department headquarters in the works. However, it has been met with some backlash due to the proposed new spot for the building. 

In the fall of 2021, Athens City Fire Department Chief Robert Rymer proposed to the council that a new fire department headquarters be built, as the old one had reached “the end of its service life.”

Derwacter and Associates Engineering had assessed the current fire department headquarters in 2021 and determined “the repairs that we are recommending and the proposed periodic observations are intended to keep the station operable for a duration of time sufficient to construct a new station. We anticipate that this process will take between two and three years.”

The assessment determined the building was outdated and beyond repair, and it would be safer to move into a new building than stay and fix the current one. 

More than $500,000 worth of repairs and maintenance work have been done on the fire department since 2005. Repairs on the building have included: a ramp surface which was replaced in 1988 and is due to be replaced again, sheer walls that were built in 2005 to prevent tilting, steel beam supports that were put in place in 2009 and ramp walls that were constructed in 2014. Now, more steel supports are currently being installed, according to Rymer’s presentation to Athens City Council.  

There are more concerns with the building that affect the firemen’s daily activities. Currently there are single pane windows on the first floor and bay area. The floor drains tend to freeze in the winter, backing up into the station. The current building’s size is insufficient for the equipment used today, as the equipment continues to become more efficient and grow in size. The headquarters is not compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act nor does it meet National Fire Protection Association recommendations for cancer prevention. 

Derwacter and Associates Engineering advised City Council to move the Athens Fire Department Headquarters to a piece of land off the roundabout on Stimson Avenue. The land is currently owned by Ohio University; the Athens CIty Council plan is to lease the area from Ohio U. 

City Council President Chris Knisely shared her stance on the topic and noted the progress that has been made on the project in a video call interview. 

“Personally and as an elected official, yes I am supportive of a new fire department,” Knisely said. 

In December, a resolution was put forth authorizing the city to place a tax levy of 0.1% on people’s income taxes for 20 years on the ballot. The levy would generate the money needed to pay back money borrowed for the fire department project. It is estimated the levy would generate a little over a half a million dollars every year. On May 3, the people of Athens will be able to vote on whether or not this levy passes, but the financial side of this levy won’t be the only thing on voters' minds. 

When the project was announced, members of the community voiced their concerns on a private Facebook group about the fact that the headquarters would fall within the 100-year flood plain. 

However, Knisely said “our city planner has informed us that this is not in the 100-year floodplain. I think more of the concern is around green space.”

“They constructed a map showing where the end of the footprint of the new fire department would be on that green space area. Then also, on that map there was an illustration of all the other parks in the surrounding area to demonstrate the abundance of green space,” Knisely said. 

The Stimson Avenue location, according to Knisley, was selected because it would offer the best response to people within the city. There is easy access to the highway and it would be close to Ohio U through 1804 Way. 

The next step in the progression of the project will be the vote on May 3. If the levy passes, it will help aid the $7 million project. Only preliminary designs can be done at this time, as the city council does not want to assume how the citizens will act on this levy, Knisely said.