Fire station relocation is focus of eastside info session

Talk about where to build a new Fire Station 5 is on the agenda for an afternoon session at Fire Station 7 in Athens: the 5 o’clock session at the station on Barnett Shoals Road will focus on Athens-Clarke County Commission plans for a relocated Station 5, which has sat at the corner of Whit Davis Road and Cedar Shoals Drive since 1974.

From the Athens-Clarke Co government website…

The Athens-Clarke County Unified Government invites residents to provide input on revised site selection criteria for a relocated Fire Station #5 as part of the Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax 2020 Project 6 – Fire Station #5 Replacement. The current Fire Station #5 is located at the corner of Whit Davis Road and Cedar Shoals Drive and was built in 1974.

Site selection criteria provides a series of guidelines for evaluating potential sites for the new station. The criteria includes characteristics such as acreage, location in comparison to other fire stations, connection to utilities, public ownership, street type, visibility, adjacent property, topography, and other factors.

A drop-in public meeting is scheduled for Thursday, March 28 for residents to learn more about the project and provide feedback. The meeting will take place at Fire Station #7, located at 2350 South Barnett Shoals Road, from 5:00 to 7:00 PM.

Public input will also be accepted on the site criteria through an online survey available through www.accgov.com/fire through Sunday, April 7. The project webpage also contains additional project information, including a recording of a presentation to the Mayor and Commission about the revised site selection criteria at their February 13, 2024 Work Session meeting that includes a detailed project introduction.

During 2023, residents provided comment on the initial site selection criteria and recommended locations. On November 7, 2023, the Mayor and Commission voted to reject the recommended locations and for staff and the Site Selection Committee to re-evaluate the site selection criteria. On January 15, 2024, the Site Selection Committee voted to proceed with site selection criteria, which were presented to the Mayor and Commission at their February 13, 2024 Work Session.

Approximately $6 million has been designated for the Fire Station #5 Replacement through SPLOST funds. This funding includes land acquisition, design, construction, a fueling station, station equipment, and other related costs to meet facility standards for a suburban design comparable to previous fire station design prototypes.

The public will also have the opportunity to suggest and comment on potential sites for the relocated station during the site selection process, which comes after site criteria is approved. After public feedback on site selection criteria ends, staff will present recommended site selection criteria to the project user group and the Mayor and Commission during spring 2023 in order to begin evaluating sites that meet the approved criteria.

Additional public input opportunities are planned as the project moves through additional phases for site selection and design.

For more information, contact the SPLOST / TSPLOST Program Management Office at 706-613-3025 or splost@accgov.com or visit www.accgov.com/splost.

Resources:

• Map of current Fire Station locations with buffer areas
• Site Selection Criteria Presentation - February 13, 2024
• Site Selection Criteria
• Mayor & Commission Work Session Video - February 13, 2024
• Fire Station #5 Project Page

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