Wading River Fire District is holding an informational workshop tonight on a $6.8 million capital construction bond proposal on the ballot for the Dec. 13. fire district election.
The meeting will be held tonight at 7:30 at fire department headquarters at 1503 North Country Road in Wading River.
The capital proposal “addresses the core structural, safety and building integrity challenges plaguing Headquarters and Station 2 firehouses,” according to a “voter’s guide” published by the district and mailed to every household within its boundaries.
The proposal will bring both headquarters and Station 2 into compliance with the Americans With Disabilities Act, Occupational Safety and Health Administration and National Fire Protection Association regulations.
The district’s aging facilities are “no longer sufficient to ensure a safe and effective emergency responder operation,” according to officials. They are cramped and can’t accommodate new, larger firefighting apparatus, they say.
Demands on the fire district are expanding exponentially with the community’s rapid growth — nearly 31 percent since 2000 — the district says.
The proposal includes: a 5,000-square-foot, three-bay storage apparatus facility at Station 2, upgraded radio communications systems and infrastructure including new radio towers at headquarters and Station 2, installation of a new natural gas heating system at headquarters, construction of additional storage space at headquarters, replace septic systems at Station 2, install a vehicle exhaust removal system at Station 2, replace the emergency generator at Station 2. See the district’s voter’s guide below for more details.
Wading River Fire District voters rejected a $4.75 million bond proposition in 2012 that would have funded the construction of a new fire station to replace Station 2, which was erected as a temporary structure in 1982.
After criticism over lack of community outreach in 2012, district officials began working with the community nearly two years ago to plan facility upgrades.
According to officials, the proposed capital bond would cost the “average” district taxpayers in Riverhead Town approximately $69 per year for 25 years. It would cost the “average” district taxpayer living in Brookhaven Town approximately $85 per year for 25 years. The averages refer to the average assessed valuation of a home in the district.
The vote will take place on Tuesday, Dec. 13 from 2 p.m. to 9 p.m. at Wading River Fire Department headquarters.
wrfd-voters-guide_1 wrfd-voters-guide_2 wrfd-voters-guide_3wrfd-voters-guide_4
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