Council Hears Update On Firestation Project

Oskaloosa Firestation 2015

Oskaloosa, Iowa – The Oskaloosa City Council met in work-session Monday, before their regular session, to hear an update on the addition to the Oskaloosa Firestation Number One.

Oskaloosa City Manager Michael Schrock began the meeting by saying the project has been progressing. He said that core samples have already been drilled along with footing inspections, in preparation for the addition to the station.

The completion of the design documents is nearly finished, and one change proposed would be to have the elevator and stairwell portion of the building, that will connect the existing station to the new, be primarily made of glass. Designers with Rohrbach Associates said that this would allow a better appreciation of the two structures design by not turning that junction into a focal point, but instead allow the existing architecture to show through the glass versus being hidden. Some council-members questioned how much glass was being used, and what the efficiency of the building would be with its usage.

The more detailed renderings of the facility were made available to the council members, and were shown to the public during the work session. They outlined in more detail what the station will look like on the exterior and interior, including where the location of the fire pole will be. It will move from its location inside the current station to inside the new facility.

Construction on the facility is scheduled to start this fall, with the initial focus being on the new structure. Once that portion of the project is completed, the focus will then turn to the existing firehouse and its revitalization. This will allow the firefighters a place to be based from during the entire process.