|
|
The current house, at 6 South Church St., was originally built for a volunteer-only staff.
Currently, firefighters who are on duty for 24-hour shifts are sleeping in one small bunk room, something the White said needed to change.
"Being on for 24 hours a day, it's like living at home and the living conditions here just aren't what they need to be," he said.
The new building, Station 5, is located of Highway F and began construction in November of last year.
The 22,500-square-foot facility is being constructed using a one-half cent sales tax hike that Sullivan voters approved in 2006.
"We're keeping a big promise to the voters by building this," White said.
Originally, the plan was to remodel the old facility, but cost estimates were just too high and proved to be prohibitive, White said.
The new, $22 million building is state-of-the-art with an auxiliary kitchen, training room, community meeting room, utility room and physical fitness room.
One of the most important features, according to White, is the eight separate sleeping quarters that firefighters will share with other employees on different shifts, meaning a private room for the firefighters as well as Missouri Baptist Ambulance personnel.
When the new facility is operational, the current building will hold administrative offices for the department and station volunteer firefighters, as per its original purpose.
Fire response is also predicted to improve with the new location since there will be houses on both sides of the interstate.
White added that he's very impressed with the work that Westward Construction, Sullivan, has done on the project and believes it's something the department and city can be proud of for many decades to come.
