PLYMOUTH — Saturday, Sept. 13 was a day Richard Metzger will never forget.
As members of the Plymouth community gathered at 184 Sandusky St. that morning, Metzger, chief of the village’s fire department, and other local officials opened the doors to Plymouth’s new $3.4 million-plus fire station.
“It was a very emotional day for the entire department because it’s been something we’ve been watching grow for so long,” the chief said. “The reality is setting in now that this is ours.”
Members of the public toured the new 11,600 square-foot facility following a dedication ceremony. The event was scheduled exactly one year and a day from the station’s groundbreaking.
Ashland-based Simonson Construction Services handled the construction of the station.
An immediate upgrade from its current facility, the new fire station was also designed and built with the future in mind, Metzger said.
“So much thought was put into future-proofing it,” he said. “We don’t want to have to worry about outgrowing it. We want to have room for expansion (if needed).
“We don’t know where this department is going to be in five, 10 or 30 years. If we do go to a fully staffed situation, we have a very safe environment for our firefighters and a great place to run out of — it’s better for the community as a whole.”
Project funded fully without local tax money
The new station was made possible through a $2.8 million gift from the late Grant Milliron and Milliron Foundation. Coupled with a $600,000 state grant, the facility is fully funded without the need for additional local tax money.
Metzger said about a $250,000 gap in funds was left by the end of the project — a difference the Milliron Foundation also stepped up to cover, he said.
“This fire station is yours, free and clear,” Karl Milliron, son of the late Grant Milliron, said in a video posted from the Sept. 13 ceremony.
The Plymouth Volunteer Firefighters Association is continuing to raise funds through donations to cover furnishing costs, moving expenses and technology and communications equipment — with a $70,000 fundraising goal.
Some new features of the new build are:
- 24/7 accommodations for up to nine firefighters.
- Truck bays separated from living quarters.
- Four-bays, with the ability to house eight trucks.
- A 1,000 square-foot mezzanine for mechanical equipment, storage and fire and rescue training.
- A community room and museum.
“Pretty much everything that we’ve asked for from Simonson and the (Milliron) Foundation, they’ve pretty much granted us everything we saw as a need,” Calvin Redden, a lieutenant with Plymouth fire, said in August.
The department’s goal is to be moved in and operational out of the new station by Oct. 1, Metzger said in August.
Below are more interior photos of Plymouth’s new station. Credit: Hayden Gray
