Right now, the new Station No.3 on Cravens Avenue is fully framed and the brick facade is being added, the structure, weather sealed. Electrical and plumbing work is happening.
The 50-year-old stations were built at a time when fewer women were in the fire department and things like physical fitness were less of a focus, said Battalion Chief Corey Gant.
“In the 1970s you know, the internet wasn't a thing. Working out, being physically fit wasn't a thing. Individual bedrooms and females — more females in the fire service wasn't a thing. So when these stations were built, none of that stuff was really taken into consideration.”
Currently three of the 100 full-time employees are women.
The old building had a single engine bay. The living quarters were open dormitory style. Now there are four individual rooms and three engine bays.
The new station will have a gym and more room for new equipment. He said these new constructions are important to keep up with the times.
“We're really trying to come into how things are now in the fire service, and trying to plan for what the fire service may look like in the next 50 years,” Gant said.
He said the extra engine bays allow for reserve support and the other equipment they’ll need in the future.
The OFD will hopefully cut the ribbon on their new Station No. 3 next spring.
Learn more about the overall project here
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