Creston Breaks Ground on New Cal Fire Station

Creston breaks ground on new Cal Fire station

From the Atascadero News:

Posted: Friday, Apr 22nd, 2011
BY: Creig P. Sherburne

Ground was broken in Creston on Wednesday to build a new California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection station.

Comparing the current station to the new one is difficult. The current station is effectively a large room with roll-up doors housing equipment and a pair of unattached mobile homes housing Cal Fire fire fighters and their offices.

The new building will be more than 6,600 square feet, able to house four fire engines in two bays, have four bedrooms with two beds each, a training room that can double as a meeting hall for Creston’s social events and even space for Sheriff’s deputies that cover that area of the county.

“There’s a lot of difference between a normal station and a mobile home,” Cal Fire Engineer George Huang said.

The new location is less than a mile from the current building, about a quarter mile from the Highway 226 and Swayze Street intersection in Creston. However, the location is on a paved road.

At present, Cal Fire station No. 43 is in the town of Creston at the end of a dirt road. Captain Kirk Gramberg said that during fire season, when an engine goes speeding down the lane, it raises a cloud of dust that he said has to be seen to be believed.

Beside being more convenient, more functional and being code compliant — “we haven’t really looked in to the code compliance of our mobile homes,” Huang said — the new station is going to be a source of pride for Creston, Acting Chief Robert Lewin said.

Lewin said that traditionally, fire departments have represented the community they’re in.

“From architecture to the volunteers staffing it to community events, a fire station is of and for the community,” he said. “People will drive by it and say, ‘that’s ours.’ It’ll give us a sense of pride.”

From all accounts, the man most responsible for the new station is retired Chief Matt Jenkins.

“Chief Jenkins has the vision,” said Lewin. “He saw [the old station was] inadequate for the community and he plowed through with perseverance to make it happen.”

The architect, RRM design, worked with Cal Fire and Sheriff officials and with the community to make a useful building that can grow with Cal Fire’s needs and be that source of pride for the community.

Susan Souza has lived in Creston for 35 years and said she’s very happy about the project.

“It’ll be further from my house, though,” she joked, “but it’s going to be good.”

Included in the plans for the new building, said Lewin, is the intention of staffing it seven days a week. At present, Station 43 is staffed only three days a week — Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.

“If it’s not manned 24/7 and if you pick the wrong day to have a fire, it’s no good,” said Anna Rapp, a 29-year Creston resident.

The San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s department helped fund the building, and are getting dedicated space as a result. The space, an office and an interview room, are going to help the Sheriff’s department maintain a presence in the rural Creston outskirts.

Chief Deputy Rob Reid said it’s inconvenient getting all the way out there when the nearest home base is in Templeton, and having this office will make a big difference.

The new station is being built by San Luis Obispo-based Rarig Construction. Rarig secretary-treasurer Chris Rarig said construction will begin right around the first of May and will be done in about 10 months, just in time for the 2012 fire season. He also added that 90 percent of the sub-contractors will be local.

Lewin said that Station 43 covers 33,000 square miles, with Creston in the middle.

“We’ve got a really dedicated group of fire fighters,” Lewin said, “but the community needs more, and it’s about to get what it deserves.”