There are many conversations being had in our community today about Mayo and the future of our health care, economic development and increasing our tax base, and about building a new fire station and its location.

The decisions being made about a proposed new fire station and its possible locations will affect our community long into the future, so we need to slow down and do it right the first time. We have made too many costly mistakes in the past. We relied on outside studies and information supplied to us by groups who do not live or pay taxes here. Rushing in unprepared for the outcome and having time schedules imposed on us have caused us to have to live with the tax consequences of those decisions today.

Remember, all of the proposed new fire station locations are within a radius the department has said will work. No one location justifies spending millions of dollars on, in land acquisition and reclamation, because it is more centrally located than another location.

The Blazing Star Landing site is already owned by the city. Some grading and infrastructure work and a facility can be built for the future with easy accessibility and expandability. There would be room for training areas in and outside the building and accommodate an emergency operation center. Even the city’s master facilities plan shows areas for public buildings, just not a fire station. City management’s vision for public buildings for that area are a multimillion dollar community center and at some point a possible new ice arena.

The East Main location is too small. It will not allow for future expansion, and an EOC and training areas are questionable. More importantly, when we are looking to expand our tax base, why would we spend money to buy properties and businesses and take them off the tax rolls and replace them with a public building? That area has been redeveloping itself and there were plans for further redevelopment until the city got involved. Let that area redevelop itself. Sell the old township fire station and put that money toward the new fire station and move on.

The Fleet Farm location has all the same issues as the East Main location, plus it is too close to the flood plain and the grade of the land will make it difficult to design a facility with drive through bays.

I’d like to commend the fire department for looking at their operation, and instead of buying new; they’ve revamped other city department’s old vehicles into something they could use. Also, recently they purchased a used platform ladder truck instead of a new one. Those decisions made the department better and saved the taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars.

The vision for a new fire station and location differ between city management, the fire department and what the community may envision. Contact your councilor. Everyone deserves a voice in this matter, and common sense and logic need to be front and center in making this project an economic and feasible reality.

Gary Hagen

Albert Lea