Churchville firefighters hope for new headquarters

Churchville firefighters hope for new headquarters

Members of the Churchville Volunteer Fire Department have outgrown their home and are hoping to raise the funds for the construction of a new building.

"Our building is about 50 years old and because of its age and size we have limited parking," Department President Steve Gulvin, a 29 year volunteer, said. "There is very little wiggle room between the trucks and the walls of the department."

As the needs and population of the community have continued to expand and the purchase of more and bigger equipment was made, the department has begun to feel the crunch. "The present building is 6,000 square feet and the one we are looking to build will be 18,000 square feet," he said.

The new building carries with it a $3.7 million price tag.

Department officials have been working for about ten years to put together plans and proposals for the hoped-for construction but have been pursuing the project more fully in the past three. "We've gone to the Town of Riga and the Village of Churchville and have made presentations to help them, and the residents, understand what our needs are," he said. "We're trying to get the word out to the community."

Town of Riga Supervisor Pamela Moore said the project would have to have community-wide support. "We would have to look at some sort of a public/private partnership as a way to fund the project," she said. "The fire department has made a case for the fact that they feel they have a need for this."

Village of Churchville Mayor Don Ehrmentraut said the fire department made a thorough and detailed presentation on the proposal to build a new firehouse but said no details have been discussed between village board members.

As for whether the village would support a move to a larger building, he said, "The Churchville FD is an integral part of our community. They not only put hundreds of hours of training and dedicated service to our community but they also, at any given time of day, risk their own lives for the safety and well being of the greater community."

Ehrmentraut said that while it would be the board's desire to provide the necessary tools to build the proposed fire house, the question comes down to whether the taxpayers could afford it. "That is the issue at hand. I have indicated that a workshop with the Town of Riga board is the next step to put all issues on the table and work the possibilities and numbers," he said. "Creative financing is the key to this goal."

With the other tax increase issues in front of the village, specifically the intercept from the county, Ehrmentraut said the community could be "devastated with such dramatic increases in the tax structure."

The department already owns an 18-acre parcel of land on Washington Street, north of Buffalo Road on which the proposed building would be constructed.

"We've made our presentations and now the next step is trying to find money for the construction," Gulvin said.