Fire station expands for staff

Orland volunteer firefighters are getting an expanded dining and meeting area put on the  Orland Fire Station  thanks to donations from the community.

The 600-square-foot addition at the fire house on Fifth Street provides more eating space, and most importantly, more classroom space for training, according to Fire Chief Jeff Gomes.

Plans call for projector mount to be placed in the room along with a rolling screen for power-point presentations, he said.

“We will have more room to sit,” Gomes said. “It should be done in a month and we can utilize it.”

The addition is being built by Steve Furtado Construction with help from subcontractors, Gomes said.

It has been planned for a year, he said, and construction started three to four months ago.

This project was done in pieces to save costs, Gomes said, and to wait on things to come in for construction.

He added the projector screen rolls up into the ceilin    g when not in use, and that provides more room for other   activities.

The addition costs approximately $50,000 to $60,000, Gomes explained, with the volunteers and community paying for most of it with money obtained through fundraisers and donations. The city of Orland paid for Americans with Disablities Act improvements to one of the bathrooms and handicapped parking access in the lot outside.

“It is giving back to the community,” Gomes said. “It is a public building and is used for voting (and other things).”

The Orland Volunteer Fire Department has 40 members, seven fire engines, one ladder truck and two water tenders, Gomes said.

His first assistant, Jerry Kraemer, said “I love it. I wish we could have done it 10 years ago.”

Kraemer said having more training space and a projector will be nice as well.