Iola building code concerns may delay occupation of Allen County’s new ambulance station at 410 N. State St. and may add to construction costs.
Dan Ware of Superior Builders had the only bid, at $63,000, for refitting the old Heartland Rural Electric building for ambulances and crews. Ware told commissioners Tuesday that fire safety provisions prescribed by Jeff Bauer, city code enforcement officer, would increase costs.
Ware did his bidding from information he gleaned from conversations with Jason Nelson, ambulance director. Ware also said he overlooked a 45-day window for construction and thought 60 days would be needed.
Bauer told commissioners city codes require a two-hour fire-resistant barrier be-tween storage areas, including ambulance bays, and living quarters. Also, he said his interpretation was that a firewall would have to extend to the roof of the building, and not just form a “vault” to enclose sleeping and day rooms.
Bauer wasn’t adversarial, but said he couldn’t alter code to meet a design that encapsulated the living area. “I’m not qualified to change design from what the code requires,” he said.
Also, he said the county’s design of single panels of 5⁄8-inch fire-retardant drywall meant to hold a blaze at bay for an hour was half what city code required.
Nelson said he will contact an architect to seek a stamp of approval for the way he and commissioners want the building configured, though likely with the more durable fire barrier.
Ware didn’t contest the outcome of a 45-minute discussion, noting that “if you don’t meet code, you could have a real problem if something happened,” such as a fire. He recalled that a fire in a similar building at Diebolt Lumber and Supply, LaHarpe, last year melted the walls “down to this high,” illustrated by him holding his hand two feet from the floor.
Commissioners won’t meet again until May 11 because of a conference next week, and told Nelson that if he obtained an architect’s blessing before then and if cost increase wasn’t significant, “Go ahead and get started.” Commissioners also waived a provision to require Ware to bond the project, with agreement to pay for work completed in installments and retain 10 percent until completion.
Nelson said he anticipated Heartland Rural Electric to move completely from the building by early May and set up shop in its new structure in Gas, on land once meant for a county ambulance station.
Ware’s timetable of 60 days of construction would put ambulance and crews in their new quarters by mid-July.
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