A yearlong study of Albert Lea-owned facilities shows support for a new fire station, expansion of the public works garage and a new community center on the Blazing Star Landing.

Representatives from consultant firm BKV Group of Minneapolis, along with representatives from firm Mead & Hunt, presented the results of the study to a crowd of about 40 people on Thursday evening at the Marion Ross Performing Arts Center. They reached the conclusion after assessing the facilities for physical condition, energy efficiency, code compliance and short and long-term maintenance costs, along with operational and staff programming.

Albert Lea Mayor Vern Rasmussen said though the study presents potential opportunities that could take place in the future, it does not automatically mean the city will move forward with the ideas.

“They are concepts,” Rasmussen said, encouraging the public to give feedback.

 

Fire station

DuWayne Jones of BKV Group presented information about the fire station, which is on a portion of the middle and lower floors of City Hall.

Jones said the fire station has an exhaust system that does not presently meet code requirements. The apparatus bays, where all of the equipment is stored, are too narrow and are unsafe, and there are no accommodations for female firefighters in the future.

He said though the building itself is in a decent condition, he was more concerned with operational problems there. Some emergency response design requirements also fall short, and there is a lack of required operational space.

The study looked at moving the station to two other locations: the first is off of East Main Street across the street from Walgreen’s near the channel between Fountain and Albert Lea lakes. The second option was at the intersection of Newton Street and West Front Street.

The study recommended the East Main Street location because of possible interruptions the emergency officials may face with railroad interference on Newton Avenue.

The proposal considers a joint police and fire station, though City Manager Chad Adams said the police part of it would likely not come for many years.

 

Public works garage

Jones said the public works garage is aging and deteriorating and does not have adequate space to house all of the city equipment there.

“One of the worst things to do is park equipment outside and have it deteriorate,” said Bruce Schwartzman with BKV Group.

The presentation called for renovating the existing buildings and expanding an additional about 25,000 square feet.

 

City Arena

Johnson said it is difficult to buy parts for the bleachers in the arena and there are accessibility concerns for spectators, among concerns with the heating, he said.

He said the lobby space is small, and he recommended a larger concession area and larger locker rooms.

For this facility, the study looked at renovating the existing facility or building new ice rinks as part of the overall site development at the Blazing Star Landing.

They said moving it to the center of town could draw more people. They ultimately recommended this option.

 

City Hall

The consultants said City Hall itself is in good shape with many recent upgrades.

They said if the fire station were to move to a new location, City Hall could be renovated to have city offices all on the first floor, the public library on the second floor and the lower level could be rented out.

If all of the building is acquired for office space or lake front development, City Hall could be built at the Blazing Star Landing.

 

Blazing Star Landing

Schwartzman said the Blazing Star Landing — the site of the former Wilson & Co. plant — was a challenge to look at.

He talked about placing a community center there that could involve the city, Senior Resources, the Albert Lea Family Y and the school district, to name a few.

Small retail businesses and housing could be along the lakefront and Front Street.

The consultants proposed moving Front Street north so that it is closer to the railroad tracks. This would free up the land along the shoreline so that can be used to promote public activity.

In with a possible community center could be the new ice arena, along with a mix of other development such as hotels or businesses.

The consultants also studied the Albert Lea city pool, the Edgewater Bay Pavilion and the Albert Lea Airport.

Johnson said for the pavilion, he looked at incorporating heating and cooling, insulating the roof to make it more usable, adding acoustic material to the roof underside and adding an amphitheater or gazebo outside.

For the airport there was discussion about existing maintenance costs because of the age of the building and that the buildings are no longer fully code compliant.

The proposal discussed new construction that would accommodate both the flight school and the actual airport and people coming in and out of there.

Schwartzman said they looked at what project should be done first and listed them in this order: public works garage, fire station, Blazing Star Landing and the airport.

He talked about grants available right now for the airport, which would cover up to 80 percent of the construction.

The BKV study cost roughly $100,000.

People interested in commenting about the proposals can contact the city manager’s office at 377-4330.