Sagle Fire seeks stimulus funding for new station

SAGLE — The Sagle Fire District is seeking $1.3 million in federal stimulus funding to construct a new main station.

Sagle Fire Chief Rob Goodyear said language in the stimulus funding referred to public safety buildings, which motivated the district to apply. Goodyear suspects the request is a long shot, but one worth making.

“It certainly isn’t an opportunity we could pass up,” he said.

The new station would replace the existing station at U.S. Highway 95 and Gun Club Road. The station was originally constructed in the early 1980s to hold two pieces of equipment.

The station has been expanded several times to make room for offices, firefighters’ living quarters and additional equipment. It lacks space for firefighter training and has an inadequate exhaust-removal system, said Goodyear.

The station also sits in the path of a project to realign and improve U.S. 95 between Garwood and Sagle.

“We are right under the middle of the proposed highway,” Goodyear said.

If the widening project ultimately goes through, transportation funding would be used to find Sagle Fire a new home base. Goodyear is hoping the stimulus funding is awarded so transportation funding isn’t tied up acquiring highway right of way for the widening.

Sagle proposes building a four-bay, eight-door fire station with a square footage of about 9,700 feet. It would have an energy-efficient design and provide space for turnout decontamination and training.

“We’re not building a palace by any means,” said Goodyear.

The site for a new station has not been identified yet, although Goodyear does not want to see it stray too far from its current location because there is good access to the district’s main east/west call routes.

The district is submitting its application to the state’s Division of Financial Management. A panel sorts through the requests and makes recommendations to Gov. Butch Otter.

Goodyear said the district could learn by April if the request will be approved.

Senator Joyce Broadsword (R-Cocolalla), Bonner County commissioners and the Idaho Transportation Department are endorsing the district’s funding request, according to Goodyear.