Fire station rendering. Photo courtesy the City of Loveland.
A groundbreaking ceremony was held Nov. 2 at the site of the future home of Loveland-Symmes Department (LSFD) Fire Station 63.
This month, construction will begin on the new station at 220 E Loveland Ave., which will replace the current facility just a block away at 100 E Loveland Ave. The new fire house will be more than 10,000 square feet with multiple road entry points, more lot space to maneuver equipment, pull-through bays, training rooms, full living quarters, and more.
Bruce Hawk, LSFD’s Executive Officer, welcomed attendees to the ceremony and introduced the Loveland-Symmes Honor Guard for the Presentation of Colors and Pastor Bill Hounshell for the invocation. Then Chief Otto Huber began the ceremony by explaining what a significant milestone this groundbreaking is for the community.
“This is more than a building. This station is a commitment to our community. We are building a legacy that will protect and serve our residents and businesses,” Huber stated. He cited that the new station featuring state-of-the-art technology will allow crews to respond faster, cover more ground, and prepare for challenges of today and the future.
Next, Mayor Kathy Bailey described the process of getting to this point: months of reviewing site plans, engineering, securing funding, and obtaining feedback from a citizens’ working group to help evaluate the new location. She noted the new station had to be in a central location to maintain LSFD’s response times, and much effort was put into the architectural design to have the new station “fit” its surroundings.
The current station has served the city since 1972, Bailey noted.
“It is long past time for us to build a new station. We have one of the most awarded, top-notch, forward-thinking fire departments in the state and country. This building will fit the quality of our fire department,” she explained.
Typically, government buildings, including fire stations, are not eligible for state or federal grants. However, city staff obtained a unique loan to fund the estimated $5.4-million station. Staff applied for the United States Department of Agriculture’s Community Facility (CF) Loan Program, which provides funding for essential community facilities at competitive rates.
“Staff worked hard to secure funding to build the station without a fire levy, nor we do we plan to impose a fire levy. We are very thankful to the USDA for their loan and low interest rate,” Bailey said during the ceremony.
City staff, members of the Loveland-Symmes Fire Department, and members of the Loveland Police Department were recognized at the ceremony including Mayor Kathy Bailey, Vice Mayor Ted Phelps, Council Member Brian Goodyear, Council Member Jon Hart, Council Member Kip Ping, City Manager David Kennedy, Assistant City Manager Chris Wojnicz, Captain Dan Gangwer, Director of Finance Mark Medlar, Assistant Director of Finance Chuck Bastin, Assistant to the City Manager/Clerk of Council Misty Clark, and Permit Specialist Becky Noel. State Representative Jean Schmidt and Judge Brad Greenberg were in attendance. The architects and construction team were also recognized.
For more information about the project, please visit https://lovelandoh.gov/548/LSFD-Downtown-Fire-Station.
About the Loveland-Symmes Fire Department
Operating as a private fire company, the Loveland-Symmes Fire Department provides fire and emergency medical services to approximately 28,000 residents. LSFD has received a Class 1 Public Protection Classification rating from the Insurance Services Office, which assesses local fire departments’ readiness. Class 1 is the highest rating any fire department can receive, ranking LSFD as one of only 383 fire departments in the United States to achieve this honor. For more information, please visit www.lsfd.org.