Bentonville's newest fire station opens

NWA Democrat-Gazette/JASON IVESTER Bentonville firefighters Jeff Harris (right) and Hunter Smith run a daily equipment check Friday on the trucks at Bentonville Fire Department’s new Station No. 6. For photo galleries, go to nwadg.com/photos.
NWA Democrat-Gazette/JASON IVESTER Bentonville firefighters Jeff Harris (right) and Hunter Smith run a daily equipment check Friday on the trucks at Bentonville Fire Department’s new Station No. 6. For photo galleries, go to nwadg.com/photos.

BENTONVILLE -- Fire Station No. 6 is up and running.

The city's newest station began full operation 7 a.m. Friday. It's at 3312 S.W. I St. in the southwest corner of the city.

Bentonville’s Fire Stations

Bentonville’s Fire Station No. 6 opened Friday at 3312 S.W. I St. The city’s other five stations include:

• Station No. 1 at 800 S.W. A St., opened in 2008.

• Station No. 2 at 1610 Moberly Lane, opened in 1989, renovated in 2012.

• Station No. 3 at 907 N.W. 13th St., opened in 1996.

• Station No. 4 at 900 McColloum Road, opened in 2001.

• Station No. 5 at 800 S.W. Elm Tree Road, opened in 2005.

Source: Bentonville Fire Department

Chief Brent Boydston and Mayor Bob McCaslin visited the station during its first operational hours.

"It's simple and very functional," Boydston said of the 9,300-square-foot station.

There's a foyer and reporting room at the entrance. Three bathrooms, each with a toilet and shower, line the south wall. A fitness room is in the building's southwest corner. The kitchen, dinning area and day room all open to each other in the back. The hall in the front has six bedrooms. There's an entrance to the bay area from the kitchen and the bedroom hall for quick and direct access.

The station houses one fire engine and an ambulance. The nearly $500,000 fire engine is new, ordered and received late last year. The ambulance is the department's reserve ambulance. A new one has been ordered and should arrive in May, Boydston said.

An empty bay was included for growth, he said.

"It's hard to add onto these once you get them built," Boydston said. "If you build two bays and you need to expand, you're handcuffed."

A wash bay is on the other side of a shop area, a storage room and bunker gear wash station.

The Fire Department hired nine firefighters to staff the new building. That's an annual cost of about $450,000, McCaslin said.

The station will operate with three firefighters for each 24-hour shift. Capt. Zeke Spence, who has been with the department for 12 years, led the station's opening shift.

"It's an honor," said Spence, who recently was promoted to captain.

The station has a cozy rather than institutional feel, he said. The one downside of being the first shift in a new building is the food hasn't been stocked yet, he joked.

"All we need now is some coffee in here," Spence said with a laugh.

Station No. 5 at 800 S.W. Elm Road and Station No. 6 have the two largest response areas. Station No. 6's district goes about half way between J Street and Rainbow Curve Road, down to Southwest 14th Street and everything out to Cave Springs and Highfill, Boydston said.

Station No. 1 at 800 S.W. A St. was responding to calls that Station No. 6 will now respond to.

Stations are typically built with a three-mile diameter, or one and a half mile radius, apart for Insurance Service Office purposes, Boydston said. ISO ratings help determine home insurance rates. The lower the number, the better the rating.

Having a station in the southwest corner will protect the city's ISO 2 rating, he said.

The station also will service a growing area, city officials said. The Bentonville Community Recreation Center is less than an half mile south and is set to open in a few months. Other mixed and residential developments are planned near and around Southwest Regional Airport Boulevard.

Station No. 6 cost $2.1 million and was paid for with set-aside money and some impact fees, McCaslin said. The city didn't accrue debt on the equipment, either.

McCaslin acknowledged there's a need for a seventh fire station. The city has known for 10 years Station No. 6 was needed, but the money wasn't available.

"Our tax base needs to grow with us," he said. "We have to be very measured before we run out to seven."

NW News on 03/07/2015

Upcoming Events