The Sag Harbor (NY) Antique Fire Truck Museum won approval to convert a Bridgehampton farm stand into a museum after the Southampton Town Planning Board voted 4 to 2 to grant a special exception to allow the facility to be created on property that falls outside the permitted zoning of the area, according to report published by sagharborexpress.com.

The museum officials plan to  use the existing 2,400-foot metal building in Bridgehampton for the storing and maintaining of antique fire trucks, according to report, which added that type of use is not permitted in the area in which it is zoned. A museum is, however, allowed in the area, so the building will display photos of antique fire trucks and be open to the public for no more than two hours per month, by appointment, the web site reported.

The building will likely house four apparatus and the planning board place a number of covenants on the property including the prohibition of outside vehicle storage, use of detergents, oils or chemical to clean, paint or maintain the vehicles, according to the report. Additionally, there will be no retail or outdoor displays or sales, according to the report.

Canton (CT) taxpayers will decide November 2 whether to spend $5.4 million for a new firehouse that town officials say could improve service, reports courant.com.

Town officials have been beating the new-station drum for several years now, as they say the River Road firehouse is cramped and outdated. The station, in Collinsville, was built in the early 1970s. And, despite EMTs sleeping there, it wasn’t designed with sleeping quarters, the report says.

It’s about 9,480 square feet with four truck bays, but only two bays are full size. The building has two floors, but with no elevator or ramps it fails to meet Americans With Disabilities Act requirements.

If voters approve the project in a referendum, the plan is to demolish the current building and erect a 14,080-square-foot replacement with five full bays, more storage, and a sleeping area, the report says.

Firefighters with the Lynn Haven (FL) Fire Department welcomed a new ladder truck with a first-ever push-in service on Wednesday (Oct. 13), according to report published by mypanhandle.com.

According to the report, the new truck, with a price tag of almost $1 million is completely custom built and took 19 months to take delivery.

One of the features of the new truck is an air scrubber designed to filter carcinogens from inside the cab to help reduce the chances of firefighter cancer, according to the report.

At the time of delivery, the truck was completely paid off, according to mypanhandle.com.

By Alan M. Petrillo

The Hamilton Township (OH) Fire Department had an outdated and undersized fire station near its fire administration headquarters that needed to be replaced. The township worked with its criteria architect SMP Design to establish the use of the land and the potential layout of a new station, then put out an RFQ (request for qualifications) to a number of architectural firms. After several presentations, the township awarded a design-build contract for Fire Station 76 to SMP Design and Turner Construction.

Kevin Spector, chief creative officer for SMP Design, says SMP had worked with Turner Construction’s Special Projects Division in completing two previous ground-up fire station facilities. “After we were selected as the architect and engineering design team, we worked with the criteria architect and the township to optimize planning, connectivity, and adjacencies of program elements, and met an aggressive timeline that had been set to deliver a comprehensive design package,” Spector says.

The resulting station, valued at $4,600,000, is 14,750 square feet, e