TOWN OF POUGHKEEPSIE – The Fairview Fire District Board of Commissioners is asking the public to approve an $8.8 million bond on Tuesday for the renovation and reconstruction of their outdated firehouse on Violet Avenue in tthe Town of Poughkeepsie. The current firehouse was built in 1948 when the district had no professional firefighter/EMT personnel and no ambulances in the station. The district has experienced substantial growth and change since the station was built, leading to the need for upgrades, according to the commissioners.
The voters in the 4.5-square-mile district that encompasses parts of the towns of Hyde Park and Poughkeepsie can vote on the multi-million dollar bond on Tuesday, December 12, 2023, between the hours of 5:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m. at the firehouse at 258 Violet Avenue in Poughkeepsie. Voters will also be electing one fire commissioner to a five-year term. The construction bond will have an initial cost to taxpayers of $8.13 per $100,000 of assessed value. The total project is expected to cost $9.6 million, with the district using $800,000 of its building reserve fund to offset the total cost, reducing the taxpayer payment to $7.45 per $100,000 of full value.
The Fairview Fire District is unlike any other district in the area, with 54 percent of the properties in the tax-exempt category. The result is traditionally higher fire taxes in the district when compared to other area departments. Tax-exempt facilities in the district include Dutchess Community College, Marist College, MidHudson Regional Hospital, and the Dutchess County Stabilization Center.
Census data, according to Fire Chief Tim Gilnack, says there are approximately 2,200 residential dwellings in the district, accounting for approximately 10,000 residents. Marist College contributes approximately $250,000 to the district annually, with at least $100,000 earmarked for the building construction fund. With the Marist contributions, Gilnack noted, the total cost of the bond for the taxpayers is $5.45 per month per $100,000 full value assessment.
The reconstruction and renovations under the plan will reconfigure the current facility and add a 3,400-square-foot addition with four apparatus bays. Two of the existing bays will be converted to a meeting room and office space. Currently, the meeting hall is on the second floor and is not ADA-compliant. A million-dollar component of the project is the result of New York State Code which requires that the building be both hurricane and earthquake-proof.
The Fairview Fire District is one of the first in the area to hire a professional female firefighter. The law, and common sense call for separate sleeping quarters, locker rooms, and showers for females. Currently, the six-member on-duty group of firefighters working a 24-hour shift, share one shower which is situated in the bathroom located next to the dining table.
The project will address several areas to bring the facility up to ADA compliance. In addition to the accommodations for female firefighters, an ADA-compliant elevator is included and the rest of the bathrooms bunk rooms, kitchen, and showers will be brought up to code compliance requirements.
The firefighting profession has a high rate of cancer that has been attributed to the exposure of toxins they encounter while performing their duties. Studies have shown that the risk of cancer decreases when firefighters perform decontamination after calls for service, including washing their turnout gear and showering in a “De-Con” area. Fairview does not have any existing area to perform those functions, according to the commissioners.
Chief Gilnack stressed that the six on-duty firefighter/EMTs are stationed at the firehouse for a straight 24-hour shift, which requires accommodations such as living quarters. “This is a bare-bones proposal that includes the minimum requirements to comply with building codes and the NFPA – nothing more. The building we are in is 75 years old and long past its life expectancy. The proposed upgrades will bring us into compliance while saving money by utilizing the current structure.
The department is on pace to answer a record-high number of calls in 2023 as they approach the 2,400 call threshold.
The scope of the project, if approved by the taxpayers, will include the following:
- Replacement of leaking roof.
- Reconfiguring existing interior to provide adequate sleeping, cooking, dining, and living quarters.
- Installation of a handicap-accessible restrooms with separate showers for male and female staff.
- Installation of ADA-compliant elevator to access the basement and second-floor, and handicap accessible bathrooms for the public.
- Two existing apparatus bays, facing Violet Avenue, will be converted to a meeting room and office space.
The 3,400-square-foot addition includes:
- Construction of four apparatus bays to eliminate the “double-stacking of fire and ambulance rigs, allowing for a faster response to calls for service.
- Change in traffic pattern of returning apparatus that will eliminate using the Route 9G right-of-way for backing the rigs onto the apron from the road.
