City spending $1.5M to modernize Wayne Avenue fire station

The Dayton Fire Department plans to upgrade other fire stations in the coming years. The average age of a Dayton fire station is roughly 60 years old, according to Dayton Fire Department Deputy Director and Chief Brad French.

The project will modernize the sleeping quarters and bathrooms for the crew housed at Station 15.

“An increase in the gender diversity of our department in recent years has further accelerated that discussion and planning process, as many facilities were built well before modern standards of privacy within the shared living setting of a fire station,” said French.

Nearly 12% of the Dayton Fire Department’s workforce consists of female employees.

Work will include renovating living spaces like bunkrooms, bathrooms and the station’s kitchen, as well as upgrading the station’s building plumbing, HVAC and electric systems, according to city documents.

Six people work out of Station 15 daily, French said. These workers will be stationed out of a former Kettering Fire Station located on Patterson Road near Woodman Drive.

“This location has been thoroughly vetted with GIS mapping software to provide the best available coverage of the Fire Station 15 response area during the renovation project,” French said.

Response times are not expected to be impacted by the renovation project. Coverage Zones for Dayton Fire Stations 11 and 18 — at 145 Warren St. and 207 S. Smithville Road, respectively — will be expanded during the renovation project to “ensure adequate emergency response times throughout Fire Station 15’s area,” French said.

French said preconstruction meetings with the contractor will be scheduled in the coming weeks, with the project expected to span six to eight months. The city estimates the renovations will be complete by Oct. 31.

The Dayton city commission approved the contract with Becker Construction Co. in February, authorizing the use of special revenue funds to cover project costs.