By DAVID A. MANN
David.Mann@newsandtribune.com
CLARKSVILLE —
The Clarksville Fire Department’s new headquarters is nearing completion.
Exterior work is wrapping up, said Matt Gullo, landscape architect and planner with Kovert Hawkins Architects. Once that’s done, construction of the interior walls can begin. A lot of the windows have already been put into the building. Finishing touches like furniture and landscaping will be the next concern.
“The idea is to have the building completed by April,” he said.
The $4.4 million new structure is being built to replace an approximately 40-year old facility on Vaxter Avenue. It’s on the town campus, where Clarksville Town Hall and the Clarksville Police Department headquarters are located, just off Veterans Parkway. Ground was broken on the new headquarters in late June.
About half the costs are being paid for from revenue garnered through the town’s tax increment financing district. The other half is being funded through a bond that’s been issued for the project.
Gullo said the project has gone mostly to plan, despite a few weather delays due to rain in the fall.
“It’s going really well. The town is very pleased. The delay is kind of a bummer but they know we can’t control the weather.”
Shepherdsville, Ky.-based E. H. Construction is doing the work. They are one of more than a dozen companies that submitted bids on the project.
From the department’s standpoint, there’s not a lot of work to be done until the new facility is completed, said fire chief Tom Upton. However, he added, once it’s done, the department will have a lot of basic supplies and loose equipment to get moved.
“I’ll be glad when we get out there and we can start utilizing it,” Upton said. “The biggest asset we’re going to be getting out of this is the new formal training center.”
A training tower and a conference room big enough for 40 people are in the project plans. The structure also has living quarters for both male and female firefighters and storage rooms. Upton said four firefighters will be on duty there at all times and four administrators will be present as well.
“It is important that Clarksville have the best fire protection we can afford,” said Clarksville Town Council President John Gilkey.
The project was started before he came to office in January.
“The site of the new fire station was chosen by the leadership of our fire department who took many important elements into consideration. I support their decision,” he said.
It’s unclear what is to become of the old facility. Gilkey said only that the town would follow state statutes for the disposal of surplus property.
