Jul 25, 2019 3 min read

Long-term plans for a new fire substation in North Strabane’s Eighty Four area moved forward on Tuesday, when township supervisors voted to seek bids for the building.

The five supervisors approved the decision in a unanimous vote. Township Manager Andy Walz said once the new substation on Route 519 is completed, it will allow the fire department to be moved there so that its current station on Route 19 can be razed, making way for a public safety building that’s also part of the township’s plans.

“This is the first domino that has to fall,” Walz said.

He declined to give the cost estimate for the substation, saying he didn’t want to influence the bids. In all, the township has issued a total of about $20 million in debt over the last several years, mostly to upgrade and expand its facilities.

The substation and public safety building to house the police and fire departments, plus a new municipal administration building and athletic complex, were among the reasons for a $16 million bond issue the township floated last year. The township also raised about $4 million – out of a total $10 million that mostly went toward refinancing previous debt – from a similar issue in 2017.

Walz said the substation will contain three truck bays, some offices and a large meeting room for training.

“We’re hoping to get those out in early to mid August and hoping to award in September,” Walz said.

The township plans to locate the substation on 81 acres it bought from Hardy Credit Co. – part of the eponymous Joe Hardy’s 84 Lumber empire – in September. County records list the sale price for the land, which is on the highway’s 1000 block, as $1 million.

North Strabane is one of the few municipalities to field paid firefighters, who account for 15 of the department’s members. There are another 15 part-time firefighters and 32 vounteers, Walz said.

The township maintains a secondary fire station near the Meadows Racetrack and Casino. The township previously had a two-bay substation on Thomas Eighty Four Road, but sold it in 2017 because it was too small for the department’s trucks.

Walz said officials expect the new, larger substation to improve fire coverage in that area.

The last report on the township by the Insurance Services Office – a for-profit research company that “collects information about municipal fire protection efforts in communities throughout the United States,” according to its website – was completed in 2016. The ISO’s ratings affect home and business owners’ premiums on fire insurance.

“While we were doing very well, they recommended that we take a look in that 84 area,” Walz said.