Oxford considers spending $2.8 million on fire department
Part of the proposal is to renovate a fire department owned building adjacent to the fire station and connect the two to allow for more space for the department’s equipment. (Photo by Zachary Meseck)
OXFORD – After discovering the fire department may be at risk due to erosion of a nearby riverbank, Village of Oxford officials are proposing a 2.8 million dollar investment into the riverbank and expansion of the facility.
On Monday the Village of Oxford held a public forum to discuss erosion concerns of the nearby Chenango River, which may threaten the fire station in the years to come.
Since replacing Oxford’s iconic truss bridge along Main Street about ten years ago the riverbank has seen significant erosion.
The growing concern has prompted village officials to analyze ways to protect the 1970’s era fire station.
Village of Oxford official made no comments at the meeting, which was put on by a paid representative, Hueber Breuer Vice President Sean Foran.
He said the total project cost would be $2.8 million, with approximately $495,000 paid with grants, $430,000 paid with Oxford’s reserves, and the remaining $1,875,000 paid in a bond. He added that it would likely result in a tax increase of about $50 per median household in the Village of Oxford.
The next public meeting about the renovation has been tentatively scheduled for 7 p.m. August 2 at the fire department.
The organization was hired by the Village of Oxford to give the presentation and answered questions from the public at the event.
According to Foran, the Oxford Fire Department is suffering from a number of issues that the project would solve including the riverbank erosion which threatens the foundation of the building, an outdated roof, unsafe storage of fire department equipment, along with a number of other concerns.
“If you didn’t have fire and rescue here, you would be waiting a long time for somebody else to get here,” said Foran. “You have a good quality structure here, and you have a great location.”
“I think this station serves this area well and you would be hard pressed to say that you just don’t need it.”
Foran said with that in mind, Hueber Breuer worked with the Village of Oxford to create a needs assessment, to come up with a conceptual design for the plan, and to determine what a valid budget would consist of.
As of the time of the presentation, Foran said the plan would consist of repairs to the roof, apparatus pad, the tower, along with a complete renovation of a nearby building into additional service bays and the reconstruction of the riverbank.
“We’re working on the tax implication right now, but I can tell you that right now we believe the median home owner in the Village of Oxford would have a tax increase of about $50 a year,” said Foran. “That’s based on an assessment of about $50,000, which is the median assessment of homes throughout the Village of Oxford.”
“So that would mean it would be $50 per $50,000 in value of a home.”
Foran said if the village wasn’t able to get the grant funding they would likely consider other options.
“At the very least we would have to go back out and say we couldn’t get the $500,000, we would now have to pay more, would you still support the project or not,” he said.
When asked if the village would be willing to just repair the riverbank in that situation, Foran said that would only be delaying the inevitable, and that the repairs listed in this project should be done sooner rather than later.
“We think the two go hand-in-hand, especially when you look at the costs of going into the bond market… to just go into the riverbank and return to the issue of what's going on in the fire bay five years later just isn’t worth it,” he added. “There are two critical components to this fire station, and with the investment of $2.8 million this place will be good to go for another 50 years.”
Foran said those interested in learning more about the project can attend the next public meeting on August 2, and that in the meantime officials will be working on finalizing potential tax implications and the project budget.
On Monday the Village of Oxford held a public forum to discuss erosion concerns of the nearby Chenango River, which may threaten the fire station in the years to come.
Since replacing Oxford’s iconic truss bridge along Main Street about ten years ago the riverbank has seen significant erosion.
The growing concern has prompted village officials to analyze ways to protect the 1970’s era fire station.
Village of Oxford official made no comments at the meeting, which was put on by a paid representative, Hueber Breuer Vice President Sean Foran.
He said the total project cost would be $2.8 million, with approximately $495,000 paid with grants, $430,000 paid with Oxford’s reserves, and the remaining $1,875,000 paid in a bond. He added that it would likely result in a tax increase of about $50 per median household in the Village of Oxford.
The next public meeting about the renovation has been tentatively scheduled for 7 p.m. August 2 at the fire department.
The organization was hired by the Village of Oxford to give the presentation and answered questions from the public at the event.
According to Foran, the Oxford Fire Department is suffering from a number of issues that the project would solve including the riverbank erosion which threatens the foundation of the building, an outdated roof, unsafe storage of fire department equipment, along with a number of other concerns.
“If you didn’t have fire and rescue here, you would be waiting a long time for somebody else to get here,” said Foran. “You have a good quality structure here, and you have a great location.”
“I think this station serves this area well and you would be hard pressed to say that you just don’t need it.”
Foran said with that in mind, Hueber Breuer worked with the Village of Oxford to create a needs assessment, to come up with a conceptual design for the plan, and to determine what a valid budget would consist of.
As of the time of the presentation, Foran said the plan would consist of repairs to the roof, apparatus pad, the tower, along with a complete renovation of a nearby building into additional service bays and the reconstruction of the riverbank.
“We’re working on the tax implication right now, but I can tell you that right now we believe the median home owner in the Village of Oxford would have a tax increase of about $50 a year,” said Foran. “That’s based on an assessment of about $50,000, which is the median assessment of homes throughout the Village of Oxford.”
“So that would mean it would be $50 per $50,000 in value of a home.”
Foran said if the village wasn’t able to get the grant funding they would likely consider other options.
“At the very least we would have to go back out and say we couldn’t get the $500,000, we would now have to pay more, would you still support the project or not,” he said.
When asked if the village would be willing to just repair the riverbank in that situation, Foran said that would only be delaying the inevitable, and that the repairs listed in this project should be done sooner rather than later.
“We think the two go hand-in-hand, especially when you look at the costs of going into the bond market… to just go into the riverbank and return to the issue of what's going on in the fire bay five years later just isn’t worth it,” he added. “There are two critical components to this fire station, and with the investment of $2.8 million this place will be good to go for another 50 years.”
Foran said those interested in learning more about the project can attend the next public meeting on August 2, and that in the meantime officials will be working on finalizing potential tax implications and the project budget.
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