Twin Falls Begins Construction of New Fire Station
TWIN FALLS, Idaho (KLIX)-In about a year a new fire station will sit near the corner of Washington Street and North College Road in Twin Falls. City officials, fire personnel, and city staff broke ground Monday afternoon to begin construction of Twin Falls Fire Station No. 2 to replace the current facility on Falls Avenue on the southeast side of the College of Southern Idaho Campus. The new station will be much more accommodating and efficient for the firefighters who live there during a shift to include some of the latest technology to alert them of a fire, according to Twin Falls Fire Chief Les Kenworthy. "Currently the old system is back from the 70s, so this will be the new and improved. It'll wake up firefighters in the middle of the night slower, more safely, so it doesn't put such a load on their cardiovascular system," he said. The lighting will slowly come on and the speakers won't blare out a call. "It's all designed with firefighters' health and safety in mind," said Kenworthy. Station No. 2 will feature some of the biggest changes in technology compared to the current Station No. 2 built nearly 50 years ago. The new station will have three double deep bays for fire trucks and equipment, six sleeping rooms, storage, kitchen and dining area, and the battalion chief will be relocated there with his own room among a list of upgrades. The new space is designed to separate the living area from the decontamination areas; special places to wash equipment and gear off following a call. "Moving our fire station from where it is on Falls right now, that's a real busy road. So moving into this location is a much better response approach to our community as well," noted Kenworthy. He said the spot was chosen to provide a better response time to the northwest corner of Twin Falls which has seen extensive growth in the last ten years. Construction of the 12,683 square foot facility will wrap up in the Spring of 2023. Currently, there are no plans for the old fire station once it is vacated. Starr Corporation is the lead contractor for the project designed by Pivot North Architecture and Rice Fergus Miller.
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