Sept. 04 -- MONROE, MI -- After years of planning, construction on Monroe’s new public safety and emergency response facility is about to begin.
The facility, which will be known as Fire Station No. 1, will be a 15,561 square-foot building designed as a hub for first responders with space for firefighter and emergency medical service training as well as programs and classes for the public. Fire Chief Rob Wight said the project will cost about $5.2 million, which will be covered by a levy passed last year.
Ground-breaking for the facility is scheduled to take place at 6 p.m. Wednesday at the site of the former Lincoln Elementary School, 911 E. Third St., Monroe.
The station was designed by Redstone Architects of Bloomfield Hills and will be under the construction management of AUCH Construction of Pontiac. The current building, Chief Wight said, is 50 years old and can’t handle all of the training and programs that the fire department wants and needs to do.
The department conducts two fire training sessions each month and one or two EMS training sessions as well, Chief Wight said.
“All of our training is done in-house,” he said.
Plus, he said, the department wants to provide safety classes for the public at the fire station. In the new building, those classes — including subjects like CPR training, how to use a fire extinguisher, and proper car seat installation — can be taught effectively.
“[The new station] is for everybody,” Chief Wight said.
Firefighters will also be able to incorporate more technology into their training and programs, such as a smart board, he said.
The building also will have the ability to remain operational after a major disaster, allowing fire personnel to continue providing vital services to the public, and serve as an emergency operations center for the city of Monroe, the chief said.
Once construction begins, Chief Wight estimated that it would take about a year to 18 months before completion.
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