Fla. county aims for millions in fire station grants

By Stephen Hudak
The Orlando Sentinel

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TAVARES, Fla. — Lake County hopes to win nearly $4 million in federal grants to build fire stations in communities where response times are slow.

"It could help us improve our times and provide better service in some of the more remote areas of our county," Deputy Fire Chief John Jolliff said.

Jolliff drafted the county's request for a share of $210 million set aside for fire-station construction in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, the federal stimulus package.

Lake County commissioners have given permission to public-safety officials to apply for the grants that could pay the entire cost of new firehouses in Altoona, Astatula and Paisley, where fire stations are badly needed. In Astatula, for instance, where the county has a fire-maintenance garage, the nearest staffed firehouse is 4 1/2 miles away.

County fire crews currently work from a building in Altoona that is owned by the Lake school district and which has been described by Public Safety Director Gary Kaiser as "woefully inadequate" for some fire engines, which can't fit inside.

In Paisley, firefighters often don't arrive at a blaze until 10 minutes after fielding a call. County fire crews aim for a response time of five minutes or less, Kaiser said.

Public-safety officials acknowledge the competition will be great for the federal grants, but they are optimistic the county can win a share because they have set aside $600,000 in fire-impact fees for the construction projects.

Jolliff said the pledge of local money enhances the county's chances because it shows the county's commitment.

The county's projects also are "shovel ready," meaning that sites have been identified, plans have been drafted and approved, and other usual administrative and logistical obstacles have been removed.

The county owns property for fire stations in both Altoona and Paisley and has eyed town-owned land in Astatula.

If secured, the grants could cover all the costs of building the new stations because of falling construction costs. Kaiser pointed out that the county had set aside $2.3 million to build a fire station in Paisley, but the winning bid on the project was $1.4 million.

The projects would be modeled after the new two-story firehouse in Lake Jem, a 7,700-square-foot facility that cost the county about $1.9 million to build in 2008. The station also boasts room for paramedics.

The county's application is due to federal officials by July 30.

Jolliff said the grants would help the county as it continues a transformation from volunteers to fully staffed, around-the-clock fire stations. But the money also could offer a boost to construction workers idled by the region's sagging economy.

"We have the need for stations, yes, but we also have the need for work," Jolliff said.

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