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Escambia Proposes $4.3 Million Cantonment Fire Training Facility With Ascend
August 11, 2011
A partnership between Escambia Fire Rescue and Ascend Performance Materials could lead to a new fire training facility worth over $4 million.
Escambia County officials are proposing the facility on 20 acres currently owned by Ascend at their Cantonment manufacturing facility. If an agreement is reached to build the fire training area, the property’s ownership would be transferred to the county.
Escambia County currently has $817,492.10 in the budget for a fire training facility; early estimates are the county will need another $3.5 to $3.75 million for the facility.
The facility, as proposed, would include a fire tower, a burn building, confined space training area, an area for structural collapse training, a rail car prop, an area for vehicle extrication training, industrial fire training, a helipad and classroom space.
The proposed fire training facility and a funding source must first be approved by the Escambia County Commission at a later date.
Pictured above: A proposed Escambia Fire Rescue training facility in Cantonment, click to enlarge.
Comments
18 Responses to “Escambia Proposes $4.3 Million Cantonment Fire Training Facility With Ascend”
Wow, you can tell who has never needed the fire department… We’re always put off or a “waste of tax payers money” until you need us.
REGARDING:
“ how about taking that 3.5 million and giving your workers a pay raise,”
You ARE right that the money would benefit people other than just their employees. That’s okay as long as their employees benefit too.
Every time those who train there work a call they should do a better job of saving lives and extinguishing fires even if the beneficiaries aren’t Ascend employees or their families.
It might also result in lower insurance rates for those in the areas who got better training. It’s pretty easy for lower insurance rates to exceed $3.5 million when many people are involved over much of a time span. In fact, it’s quite possible the Ascend employees alone will get that much benefit and the rest will just be extra.
Years back we figured where the McDavid VFD ISO rating lowered insurance more than the MSBU cost, but I have no idea how it compares now. Part of that rating was equipment, training, record keeping, response time.
David for wise spending
and maximum benefit
If hazmat has been buried on this property over the years, like at the wastewater property, will it be properly disposed of, or kept quiet, just like the wastewater plant ???
My dad and granddad were both firefighters so You know snipe, im not aganst a training facility. I just think this particular plan sou.ds fishy.much too comvenient . Yes think big we could have a facility for training personnel for the whole region not just the county. Ps. A tanker truck full of water will get stuck on a so called road that has never been packed or graded. Just saying…..
And how about that pay .give the voluteers a paid job with equipment etc.
to Polythenepam:
Most if not all buildings around here do not have the need for fire hydrants next to them. All of the northend departments have tanker trucks that have more than enough water to extinguish any fire that might pop up. just saying.
and imagine if it were you or a loved one living next to the plant and got in a jam… id want the people trained to do the best job possible. AND if you work at the plant and want more money…join the fire brigade!
Being an old volunteer fire fighter i think the idea is great. the entire county could use the facility to train!!!
WASTE OF TAX MONEY, LET ASCEND SEND ALL OF THE THEM TO TEXAS A&M FIRE TRAINING SCHOOL EVERY 5 YEARS, LOOKING AT THE LAYOUT ITS FOR INDUSTRIAL FIRES ANYWAY!
BarrineauParkDad continues to prove my point as “he” posted… “Most of the public would be surprised to know how many of the surrounding area’s volunteer firefighters are employees of Ascend and receive their training and certifications from fire training at Ascend. I know of at least three of the area’s VFD’s chiefs are employed by and trained at Ascend.”
Ascend is trying to get a “free” training facility to use for its own purposes at taxpayer expense.
Some people are going to gripe no matter what.
Most of the public would be surprised to know how many of the surrounding area’s volunteer firefighters are employees of Ascend and receive their training and certifications from fire training at Ascend. I know of at least three of the area’s VFD’s chiefs are employed by and trained at Ascend.
For the record, no one at Ascend has lost their pension. Those of us with a vested pension balance, still have it and are make interest on it, although its not much. There is simply no more contributions being made. We do however have a 401K with a contribution match.
ghw, you said it and this is the concern as you posted, “Ascend has [its] own 24/7 paid fire brigade, trucks, ambulance, medical department, and hazmat response team.”
For 20 acres, the county is going to provide a full-time training support center for the company’s training requirements at our expense. NO WAY!!! Commissioner White better get on board with a no vote and look to using county owned property to build a training facility. This way Ascend can continue to pay taxes on its property!
Polythenepam
Ascend has their own 24/7 paid fire brigade, trucks, ambulance, medical department, and hazmat response team.
Sounds pretty awesome. Can’t wait to see this. Great training for the fire fighters of the county
Well it sounds like to me that Ascend doesn’t want to pay taxes on the land so they give it to the county on the agreement that we,( the county) build a fire training facility at the county’s expense next door to Acend so they have a fire brigade handy. Its a long way from my house to a fire hydrant HMMMM!!!!! Just sayin’…..
This might be a good thing if we had contracts from other counties to train their fire protection personnel, then the money wouldn’t come out of the community’s pocket to build but we would run this like a PROFITABLE business. Hell we still have a volunteer dept . how about if ya have all that to play with PAY THEM ???
And yes, Ascend shouldn’t be allowed to do anything till they make it right with all the people that lost their retirement.
This is just another case of big money and politics running over the general population.
From the article, it appears that Ascend is going to get a free training facility to use at taxpayer expense for the trade of some swamp land. Escambia County owns many acres of property and entering into a public/private partnership with Soultia, Monsanto, Ascend or what ever the name of the company will be next year is a bad idea.
Meant to add assuming Ascend would pick up the tab for the remaining 3.5 million….
Great idea, Local Yocal….. Ascend has a great fire training program left by Monsanto and Solutia. Give that 3.75 million to the employees and the retirees that were there keeping the plant running during Solutia’s bankruptcy…..This I mean to all the non- exempt and wage roll people. The exempt people did just fine after lumping the wage roll pension in with theirs to give them all the golden handshake!!!!!
Ok here we go. First they are raising your MSBU funds to fund firefighters which they didn’t need. They are over 1/2 million over budget in overtime alone, so now they are going to overspend again and guess who pays. Yep us. I agree the training is vital but I believe it could still be accomplished the same way we do our home budget. You find ways to cut a little here and there to pay for the things you want.
Believe me the budget the county has for fire protection could be cut with overspending and waste items taken away it would pay for the training grounds.
Can you say fire fees going up again on your property again; yes you can because this is change you can believe in! And this 20 acres can be yours at the bargain price of an additional $3.75 million over the almost $1 million the county already has squirreled away? Mark my words down here today because this dollar estimate is way off the true mark of what it will really cost. Look at the plan because it is obviously flawed. EVOC training will need more than a postage stamp sized area unless they plan to drive VW bugs instead of fire trucks.
Hey Ascend- I have an idea, how about taking that 3.5 million and giving your workers a pay raise, better yet put it in their retirements that Solutia and Monsanto ripped them on during the bankruptcy!!!!