A rusted roof, cramped parking spaces, broken ceiling tiles and limited storage. These are just some of the issues the Deep River Fire Department hopes to address through an upcoming referendum.
On Nov. 5, residents will vote on whether to authorize $10 million to build a new firehouse and $2 million for a new engine and brush truck.
In preparation for the vote, the fire department is gearing up to campaign and convince voters of the need for the spending, using everything from social media to banners and mailers to spread their message.
On Monday, the department posted a photo to its Facebook account of the rusted roof of its headquarters, along with a message describing the poor condition of the building. “Please support the vote in November,” they wrote.
Later that night at a Board of Fire Commissioners meeting, Deputy Fire Chief Adam Kerop said he’d also pursue creating a political action committee to gain residents’ support.
Other tactics discussed included placing signs and banners around town similar to when someone is running for political office, mailers, and public informational meetings at the firehouse.
“None of us have ever done this kind of stuff before,” Board of Fire Commissioners Chair David Berardis told CT Examiner. “If we don’t do a good job of getting the word out, a lot of people won’t know anything until they show up at the election and it will not pass.”
Deep River’s main firehouse at the intersection of Union and Elm streets, is a brick building from 1961. The vehicles inside are blocking each other’s passage, and department members say the space is too small to meet their needs.
“The new firehouse would have each bay with its own garage door,” Berardis said. “So you can pull out any truck regardless of whatever is needed. If there’s a fire, if there’s a car accident, you wanna be able to get each truck out without having something locked in.”
In a mezzanine built into the side of the engine parking space, there’s a broken ceiling and a rusted roof. The space was originally a recreation area, but it now serves as storage space. Uniforms were piled on a pool table, along with masks and other safety equipment that cannot be placed elsewhere.
These issues were surveyed in 2023 and compiled in a report by independent consulting firm JNL Associates, of Old Lyme.
“There’s nothing fancy here. There are no exercise rooms, there’s no nothing. There’s no frills whatsoever in this building,” Fire Chief Timothy Lee said. “In the new building, there would be some functional space.”
The planned building is about three times the size of the current one and would be constructed next to the firehouse on property already owned by the department. Among the features, it would include a conference room for training.
Once the building is completed, the old firehouse would be demolished and replaced by parking lots.
Berardis, standing next to a 1989 fire engine, pointed out the rear seats, which are exposed rather than enclosed under a cab like in newer models. This is one of the vehicles they want to replace with the referendum money. Once the purchase is approved, Berardis said, delivery takes three years, so the equipment will be 38 years old by the time it is replaced.
The other piece of equipment slated for replacement is a 1982 brush truck housed in the smaller Deep River fire station on Winthrop Road.
“These trucks are built to a national standard that changes every three years, four years, five years depending on what’s going on,” Kerop said. “There’s a tremendous amount of safety improvements.”
Lee said the department has been asking for a new headquarters for over 15 years, and credits First Selectwoman Carol Doak-Jones’ support for bringing them this close to approval.
The referendum was approved on Sept. 3 at a joint meeting of the Board of Selectmen and the Board of Finance.
One of the concerns raised during the meeting was the impact the project would have on taxpayers. Finance Board Chair George Eckenroth estimated it would increase taxes by $400 per year on average over the next 40 years.