Fire station gets $250G for improvements

By Abbe Smith, Register Staff
Posted on Sat, Apr 5, 2008

WEST HAVEN — The West Shore Fire Department is slated to receive $250,000 in state funds to pay for capital improvements such as roof work, painting and the installation of energy-efficient windows.

The funding, approved at a meeting last week of the state Bond Commission, was hailed as great news by fire officials and state Sen. Gayle Slossberg, D-Milford, who fought for the funding on the state level.

“This sets us up probably for the next five to seven years for capital improvements for our buildings,” Fire Chief Harold C. Burns said Wednesday.

Burns said he first sought out the money about two years ago and was grateful to Slossberg for her help in securing the funds.

Specifically, the money will help pay for roof and brickwork repairs at the district’s two stations, repainting of the Ocean Avenue station and the addition of energy conservation features and improvements that Burns predicted will save the district money in the long run.

Slossberg issued a statement calling the grant the “product of many years of work.”

“It will also help to alleviate the burden felt by taxpayers living in the district and allow for improvements while leaving room in the district’s budget for other vital needs,” she said.

Burns said the funding is particularly welcome on the heels of news last year that the station was placed on the State Register of Historical Places by the Connecticut Historic Preservation Council of the Commission on Culture and Tourism.

The station was built in 1936 by the federal Works Progress Administration, which provided jobs to help people unemployed during the Great Depression.

Abbe Smith can be reached at asmith@nhregister.com or 789-5615.