Fire stations welcome upgrades

EAST COUNTY — Byron Teates has been in the business of saving lives since 1975.

As a longtime firefighter, Teates knows the importance of the physical and mental training required for the position.

During the 30 years he has spent working at East Manatee Fire Rescue, he has noticed his firemen and women lack adequate, nearby facilities to help them prepare for their job.

The 11-year fire chief wants his employees to have the ability to practice at a training tower within their district.

“We really haven’t had a place to train other than if we might find some vacant buildings, or someone closes down their shop and we ask to train there until new tenants come in,” Teates said. “Or, we train on the streets. We need our own facility.”

As early as next year, the East County fire district will get its wish.

It is working on plans to rebuild Station No. 2, at 803 60th St. Court E., and a training tower at East Manatee Fire Rescue Station No. 1, at 3200 Lakewood Ranch Blvd., Lakewood Ranch.

The district now is reviewing request-for-qualification proposals from engineers who want to design the facilities.

The Board of Fire Commissioners will then select a candidate, and board members will negotiate prices with the chosen company, Teates said.

“We just are trying to find legitimate companies that know they can do this kind of work,” Teates said. “We aren’t looking for mom-and-pop shops that might be up to the work. We want to get it right.”

Teates expects the new training tower to resemble a four-story concrete block building with few windows. Firefighters will use the building to practice speed, endurance and other field skills.

Although the county houses a variety of training towers, all existing towers sit in the northern and western parts of the county. The towers are too far away, realistically, for on-the-clock East County firefighters to travel to train, Teates said.

“Scheduling crews to get out there is a big problem,” Teates said. “If they’re out there they aren’t in the district to respond to calls. We’re here 24/7, and by having a new tower, if we’re here at 6, 8 and 10 p.m., and they want to go out and train, it’s there for them to use.”

Teates said the district has needed a training tower for a long time.

The district still must determine where Station No. 2 firefighters will relocate while their building, which was constructed 30 years ago, is completely rebuilt.

The structure is not up to new hurricane codes and has other limitations that require its demolition, Teates said.

“We’d like the building to be a little bigger than it is now, maybe about 6,000 square feet,” Teates said.

“The big thing is, we’ve got some challenges on that site, because of how old the station is. At the end of the day, there are three things: we’ve outgrown it; it’s a metal building, so it certainly doesn’t meet hurricane standards; and we’ve had plumbing and other issues over the years. It’s time we do something about all that — it’s just time.”

Teates said the district does not yet have an estimate on project costs.

Contact Amanda Sebastiano at [email protected].

ROOM FOR GROWTH
In December 2012, officials of East Manatee Fire Rescue purchased two properties with plans to build future stations.

The lots, located on the southwest corner of the intersection of State Road 64 and Dam Road and just north of State 70, immediately west of the Panther Ridge community, have not yet been developed.

East Manatee Fire Rescue Chief Byron Teates said the district still has no definitive timeline for construction, but expects the new stations will come online as the area develops.