East Manatee fired up about new home

Although East Manatee Fire Rescue District Chief Byron Teates began his career as a volunteer, he can’t really say he started on the bottom floor and worked his way up.

That’s because the building where he worked had no floor.

In the early 1980s, the district leased a pole barn on State Road 64, just west of Interstate 75.

“We were called the tin orphans,” said Teates, who is about to relinquish his duties to incoming Chief Lee Whitehurst.

Teates said that first building had no floor, just dirt.

Before Teates leaves his post, though, he probably is going to feel as though he has gone from the pole barn to the penthouse.

Late in November, Station 2 will reopen as the district’s newest facility. It is new construction that replaced the old Station 2, which was built at 803 60th St. Court E., Bradenton. The new 9,256-square-foot building was constructed on the same site, which is tucked behind businesses on the south side of State Road 64, across from the Super Wal-Mart. The old building was demolished earlier this year.

Like Teates, Whitehurst started as a volunteer in the early 1980s. He is pleased the new station has been built to handle growth.

“We designed this to staff two fire crews,” Whitehurst said. “We wanted to build it right the first time.”

Only one crew is needed at this time, but with the district’s location at the western boundary of the fire district, it is in prime position to service an aging community in its immediate area, along with growth in the State Road 64 corridor while helping to respond to traffic incidents on I-75 and other major roadways.

The rebuild also addressed other concerns the district had with the original building. It had been renovated a few times, but each time under a different building code. It was not built to hurricane standards, so any firefighters at that facility would have to relocate during a serious storm.

The property was low-lying, so flooding was an issue during heavy rains. 

All those concerns have been corrected in the new $2.4 million building, Whitehurst said.

The building is expected to receive its certificate of occupancy this week, so firefighters can return to the site within a few weeks. They’ve been at a temporary structure at Tom Bennett Park during construction.

Firemen are excited about the change in venue.

“It’ll be nice, a welcome addition,” firefighter Jason Henderson said. “It’s laid out to be comfortable.”

Whitehurst said the district had considered building a new Station 2 on another site because it would have been cheaper than rebuilding. Ultimately, district officials determined its existing site was ideal for its service area.

Station 2 is one of six in the East Manatee Fire Rescue District, which services 100 square miles. The district serves the area generally south of the Manatee River, north of University Parkway, east of Braden River and west of County Road 675.