On December 29th the West Manatee Fire Rescue Board of Fire Commissioners approved the purchase of an office building to serve as its Fire Prevention, Training and Administrative Headquarters. The building located at 6417 3rd Avenue West, Bradenton previously was home to a medical practice and is located near fire station four. The building constructed in the early 1980’s is in good shape and after some interior remodeling will serve the District well into the future. The building has three parts; 1026 sq ft entry foyer, 8,037 sq ft of office and meeting room space and an 1849 sq ft rear addition for storage of records, fire prevention, public education, training and operational needs.
This will allow the District to consolidate all the fire prevention, training and administrative staff, now located in two separate buildings 6 ½ miles apart, together to provide a more stable administrative environment. Additionally, duplication can be eliminated that was required by having two separate office buildings as well as improving working conditions and communications among staff and the public.
This satisfies a goal set by the District in 1998 to have a single administration building which was identified during the merger process of the Westside and Anna Maria Fire Districts. Additionally the District made this a critical issue in 2005 and was one of the primary short term (1-5 years) goals.
The District identified many problems with its aging facilities and the fact that they were not built for a career fire service. It was evident that the District had run out of room and was not providing adequate space for our staff and firefighters and the buildings were showing their age. All of the fire stations built during this period were when the Districts were an all volunteer firefighting force and were not designed for an all career staffing. The newest building is 20 years old with the oldest being 46. Space is inadequate for the present staffing and with the addition of a thriving reserve program there are times when reserve firefighters have no place to bunk. In 2007 the administration requested that an RFP (request for proposal) be issued to evaluate our fire facilities and conduct a space needs assessment to identify deficiencies to develop a plan to address these building issues and space needs.
The board rejected the first RFP proposal because they felt the cost was too high. The Administration then took the Board on tours of each fire station and the administration building and they quickly realized the problems that were being faced. The Board then authorized the creation a blue ribbon citizen’s advisory committee made up of local residents, elected officials, business owners, bankers, contractors and clergy. They were given the task of inspecting the facilities and understanding all the present and emerging trends in emergency services as well as the codes and standards dealing with fire facilities. The Committee was asked to have a recommendation to the Board by September 1, 2008.
After nearly 6 months of inspections, meetings and discussions the Committee made a recommendation to the board that the fire stations and administration building be upgraded or replaced and should include green design in any future construction. The Committee was also in support of the purchase of the medical office building to serve as our administrative headquarters.
The Board accepted the recommendation and directed staff to develop an RFP for architectural and engineering services to complete a facility survey; space needs assessment, site feasibility evaluation and conceptual design study. The Committee served as the review board for the RFP’s and after interviewing all prospective firms it recommended to the Board Totems Architecture. The Board accepted the recommendation and contracted with Totems to complete the study which is in its final stages and should be completed by January 2010.
The medical building has been on the District radar for many years and when it learned in 2008 that it may be available an inquiry was made but the $2.8 million purchase price was beyond the financial ability of the Fire District to purchase or lease. The building set vacant and in October of 2009 the property was listed for sale for $1.65 million. The Board authorized staff to negotiate an offer and the owner and lender agreed to a short sale offer (short sale is amount below what is owed on the mortgage) of $1.1 million.
A survey and a due diligence inspection was performed to asses the condition of the building. The inspection and survey was completed and after review it was determined to be acceptable.
The Board held a special meeting on December 29th and after hearing public comment approved the purchase of the building.
The District will now develop an RFP for plans and construction to remodel the interior for offices, public meeting room, storage and ancillary space.
