After almost four years of planning and discussion, the city of Portage will be replacing its oldest fire station.
Fire Station No. 2 will be getting a $6 million makeover this summer. A 2015 evaluation found that it would be more cost-effective to build a new building rather than renovate the current station, built in 1974.
Plans for a new, 18,000-square-foot station were approved at Tuesday night’s Portage City Council meeting. The project will be funded through the city’s Capital Improvement Program funds. Built with the future in mind, Public Safety Director Nicholas Armold said, the new station will be a source of pride for Portage for the next 50 years.
“Residents will be proud with what they see,” Armold said. “It’s not extravagant, but it’s representative of the city.”
The new layout was designed to improve wellness, Senior Deputy Fire Chief John Podgorski said. The top priority was adding “clean” rooms for firefighters to remove used equipment as soon as they get off the truck.