With quick access to Interstate 195 and the growing wildland interface areas of Spokane, Fire Station 5 opened a year ago, but the station is slated to close by 2020. Why? Because right now, Station 5 is a two-story home on a 10-acre plot of land at 115 W. Eagle Ridge Blvd. in the southwest section of the city.
The plan is to have a permanent Station 5 constructed by 2020, with enough money budgeted to fully staff the station.
In the meantime, Fire Station 5 is home to Attack 5, a Type 6 wildland pumper with a rescue body that is staffed by a firefighter/paramedic and a fire officer. Its small size allows it to navigate in the wildland interface, and the unit can be used as an initial attack pumper at structural fires and it also carries extrication equipment.
The area is surrounded by developing neighborhoods and then heavily wooded and forested interface areas, increasing the chances for wildfire responses.
“It’s relatively a slow district and the calls that we go on are highly critical,” Assistant Fire Chief Brian Schaeffer said. “During the summer, it’s pretty important for us to have the wildland rig here. And Interstate 195 has had some very serious accidents that we’ve needed a crew on scene right away. They are in the perfect spot.”
Station 4 is the next closest fire station, with about a 9-minute response. But, Schaeffer said, that’s a very busy station creating even longer response times to the southwest section of the city.
The city purchased the home in April 2015 and it became an active fire station in October. The plan is to sell the home once the permanent fire station is opened.
Upgrades make it a firehouse
Schaeffer said all of the upgrades to the home were focused on firefighter safety and health. All carpeting was removed from the station and replaced with easy-to-clean hardwood flooring.
“The purposeful removal of carpets was not just for the carcinogens from fires, but the bugs, like MRSA and anything else that they might pick up while they are in the field,” Schaeffer said.
The first floor boasts a large living and dining area, plus office space. An outdoor eating area is located off the back of the home. The kitchen includes some commercial appliances to meet the expected wear-and-tear of fire station crews.
There are three bedrooms with the typical amenities, plus lockers for members’ personal belongings. A workout room was included.
Additional costs were met when it came time to install a secured Internet connection to the house that allows crews to submit reports and conduct training and business matters over the department’s virtual private network.
Inside the garage is Attack 5, PPE storage, a washer and extractor and storage. A large garage door was added to make sure the vehicle had plenty of clearance. A Plymovent exhaust removal system was added to the garage to capture Attack 5’s exhaust.
“We pretty much well redesigned everything,” Schaeffer said, noting that careful planning was used to make sure the resale value of the home was not diminished.
The structure is fully sprinklered.
One of the unexpected costs, Schaeffer said, was making the structure ADA compliant. That included adding a ramp, enlarging doorway openings and some interior modifications such as grab bars in the bathrooms.
The property and structure cost $550,000 with about $80,000 in renovations, including the installation of the sprinklers, lockers and widening the driveway.
The Neighborhood
Station 5 is situated in a residential neighborhood, but less than a mile from Highway 195, which provides easy access to all parts of the city.
“We’ve spent a lot of time with the neighbors, making sure they are comfortable with what we planned to do and what we have going on,” Schaeffer said.
In order to reduce noise, the crew leaves the neighborhood to do their morning equipment and vehicle checks, which include starting equipment and putting the pump into gear.
“We have such an emphasis on connecting with the neighbors,” he said, noting that firefighters attend homeowner association and neighborhood meetings and spend a lot of time interacting with residents in non-emergency settings.
The Future
Spokane Fire is already working on plans for a permanent Station 5 in the same area. The goal is to open the station by 2020 and staff it with three firefighters and a pumper. At that point, the home will be put up for sale.
“Whoever buys it will have a really nice home,” said Schaeffer. “We focused our improvements on sustainability and…we didn’t want to make it too commercial.”
“In the interim,” Schaeffer said, “we needed to do something and those 192 calls that Station 5 responded to meant 192 people needed our help quickly.”
“It really puts the house in firehouse,” said Schaeffer.
