BEAVERCREEK TWP. TO BUILD $2.5MFIRE STATION
As more people and businesses fifind a home in burgeoning Beavercreek Twp., offifficials are looking to expand public safety services.
A fififth fifire station to serve the northeast part of the township is tentatively set to be built in the area of Fairground and Trebein roads.
Offifficials are looking to hire an architect to get started on the $2.5 million project, construction of which is expected to start by early spring, with it opened by the end of 2018.
Nine new fifirefifighters were brought on board at the beginning of this year, and they will shift from working at Fire Station 61 on Dayton Xenia Road
to the soon-to-be-built Fire Station 65, said Beavercreek Twp. Fire Chief David VandenBos.
“By putting a station here — the Conservancy, Spring Ridge, SpringMeadow, Rolling Meadow, Stone Hill Village, Deer Hollow — these areas are all going to be better served,” VandenBos said.
Beavercreek Twp. Fire Department serves both the city and the unincorporated areas of the township. That’s nearly50squaremilesof land to provide with fire protection and EMS services.
The department has a total of 63 firefighters, five chief officers, one part-time and two full-time fire prevention officers.
The four existing firehouses are on Indian Ripple Road, Kemp Road and two locations along Dayton Xenia Road.
With the continued growth, especially in residential developments in the township, there are plans to build a sixth firehouse at the airportonNorthValleyRoad.
Greene County Commissioners recently approved extending water service to the airport, which will be necessary for a fire station to be built there. Construction on that sixth firehouse is projected to be three to five years in the future.
MichaelKenney, an ex-firefighter and resident of Stonehill Village, said he’s happy to see the township’s plans to better serve his neighborhood.
“If you’re going to expand, you have to provide services for that area,” Kenney said. “It’s a huge factor when you’re talking about EMS. When you get new growth, you’ve got to be able to anticipate that growth and plan for it.”