Kearney Volunteer Fire Department, (Brian Neben, Central Nebraska Today)
KEARNEY — The Kearney city council selected a construction manager and issued bonds related to the future construction of Fire Station No. 3, which aims to improve response time to the northeast side of the community.
Kearney City Manager Brenda Jensen said that the proposed No. 3 fire station is planned to be built near the new water tower which is located near the intersection of E. 48th St. and N Ave.
The purpose of the location is to improve the response time for the northeast side of Kearney. Jensen said as the community begins to expand in that direction, it becomes more important to have fire services close by.
The City of Kearney sought a Construction Manager at Risk (CMAR) for the fire station project.
A CMAR is a project delivery method where the construction manager is hired early to consult during the design phase and then acts as the general contractor during construction, taking on risk for the project’s cost.
Nine firms submitted proposals for consideration. They included BD Construction, Beckenhauer Construction Inc., Boyd Jones Construction, Chief Construction, Hausmann Construction, Kingery Construction Co., MCL Construction, RMV Construction, and Sampson Construction.
A review committee shortlisted four firms to the interview process, which included BD Construction, Hausmann Construction, MCL Construction, and Sampson Construction.
After the interviews, the committee identified MCL Construction to best meet the criteria outlined in.
The council also approved for bonds to be issued in the principal amount of $10.0 million for the purpose of constructing the new fire hall, purchasing a fire engine, public safety equipment and miscellaneous costs.
The Kearney Volunteer Fire Department currently has Fire Station No. 1 in downtown Kearney along A Ave. and Fire Station No. 2 in northwest Kearney along 30th Ave. There is also a KVFD presence at the Kearney Municipal Airport to meet Federal Aviation Administration requirements.
Jensen said the KVFD assets at the airport can respond to northeast Kearney, but the response time can still be up to 10 minutes.
Jensen said that the rough timeline is to break ground on the new station in the spring of 2026 and to finish construction within the year.
The current plan for manning the station is to relocate staff members and additional fire engines and apparatus to the new station.
Jason Whalen, Fire Administrator for KVFD, said the department is still working through decisions when it comes to manning the new station. He did note that they won’t need to purchase new engines for Station No. 3.
He said the biggest benefit will be the proximity to northeast Kearney which is a long way from Stations No. 1 and No. 2.
When asked about ideal response times, Whalen said KVFD members work to be out the door 90 seconds after dispatch and six minutes to an accident scene or fire is the maximum time they want to take traveling in town.
Whalen said he is excited that a third station is coming to the northeast part of town. He said he feels like the addition of the station is overdue and they are excited for the opportunity to be able to respond quicker to residents in the area.
