Council Debates Re-Bidding Firehouse Project [VIDEO]

After continuing to debate Thursday what to do with the submitted bids for the construction of a new Fire Co. 2 firehouse on Boonton Avenue, the still has not agreed on whether to reject the bids, as even the lowest bidder's bid came in higher than the borough was planning on spending on the project.

The borough has agreed to fund the reconstruction of the The proposed firehouse is two floors and will be 80 by 50 square feet and include a third bay, meeting room, bathroom with shower and more. The current firehouse is barely large enough to fit the two engines housed there. In order for the driver to get into the engine that rests in the right bay, the door of the bay must be opened.

Chief Jim Bosch and recording secretary Alex Merlucci spoke to the council Thursday, asking them not to reject the bids but instead, award the lowest bidder, who proposed $1,091,875. The borough had bonded $900,000 for the project and had received a commitment of an $80,000 grant from Morris County toward construction and engineering of the project.

Mayor Bob Collins told the council he was informed that the borough has until the end of September to utilize the grant, unless they apply for a six-month extension.

The borough received 13 bids, with the highest bid coming in at $1.8 million. In Merlucci's remarks, he told the council that the fire department is fearful that if the council rejects all bids and goes out to bid again, the numbers could come in even higher.

When the fire company told the council that the project would cost under $900,000, before the borough bonded for the amount, Merlucci said other factors lead to the estimated amount.

"That number was an estimate that we had gotten a few years back, as if the fire company was going to privately build the firehouse," he said.

During a work session meeting on Aug. 11, several councilmembers said the fire company should revisit plans for the building and see if changes could be made to lower the cost of the project. Former Mayor Glenn Sisco said he thought the mezzanine that was being planned for the second floor of the building could potentially be eliminated. But Merlucci said Thursday after looking at the plans, nothing could be eliminated from the plans to save costs.

"There's nothing to take out of the project," he said. "We are getting a bare-bones building that is going to fulfill our needs for the next 75 years so that we don't have to go back and do this again."

Councilman Dan O'Dougherty asked why the meeting room on the upper floor could not be removed. Bosch responded that the room was included in the plans so that in cases of emergency situations (such as blizzards or heavy storms), members could rest at the firehouse and be able to respond directly from there, as opposed to leaving their homes to travel to the firehouse before responding. Additionally, Merlucci said the meeting room was designed to increase training abilities in the winter months.

O'Dougherty also asked if the third bay being proposed could be removed.

"Maybe we have to consider now, in light of this, maybe we can house two, just two firetrucks there, do something that's even, you know, less expansive of the drawings that you've submitted," he said.

But Bosch said the third bay was included in the plans for consideration of the future.

"Removing the third bay will put us in this position we're in now in the future," Bosch said. "Could we eliminate Bay 3? Sure. Would it save $300,000-$400,000? No."

Merlucci said the fire company has received discounted rates on construction, including crane time, and that all panels and many materials that would be used in the construction would be pre-fabricated and constructed off-site.

Bosch said that the third bay was included in the plans to not only potentially store a third engine in the future, but also to help alleviate the other firehouses (one on Kiel Avenue and another in Smoke Rise) if they need to store an engine elsewhere. The third bay was also included in plans in case Kinnelon's population grows and the need exists for another engine.

Councilman Andrew San Filippo agreed that the plans include only what is essential to the fire company members.

"It's not the Taj Mahal that they're planning on building," he said.

San Filippo said he wishes that the $900,000 was not still in consideration, as the estimate is antiquated. He also said that, after meeting with the fire company, there are no modifications that can be made to the building without jeopardizing the needs of the fire company.

"To build a building that replicates the building that they have now, I think, would be in poor judgment of this council because we're just burdening the council of six years from now," he said.

Councilman Jim Freda said that he feels the project has been rushed from the beginning.

"I feel that it was rushed and I feel that due diligence wasn't done on this project," he said.

"I feel you guys have it under control, the machinery's safe in there, and I thought with the right timing and workmanship towards this project everybody up there would not be in any disagreement."

O'Dougherty echoed his sentiments.

"Nobody's saying [the firemen] don't do a fantastic job. It's just that we've got to be concerned with the taxpayer dollars also," he said.

Councilman Stephen Cobell said that the council is faced with a difficult challenge after they agreed, with the fire company, on the $900,000 amount.

"There's no doubt that the firehouse has to be replaced, it's just that it seems that a few months ago, we did exactly what you guys asked us to and now here we are back at square one," he said. "We went along with what was asked of us, after looking at it long and hard and asking all the questions, and it didn't work."

"We all discussed a predicament that we hoped to avoid and we're now here, so we've got to deal with it," said Councilman Ron Mondello. "Logically, I don't see any way around this than rejecting these bids, going back out to bid, hoping for another number, a lower number, however, with the understanding that if that number comes in higher, we still have to move forward. We've got to solve the problem, the building has to be constructed."

The council discussed potentially adding money to bonds in progress to make up the difference of the amount. Councilman Cobell, the Finance Committee chairman, said he would speak to the borough's Chief Financial Officer to see if this could be done.

Mondello made a motion that the council adjourn the topic until the borough's work session meeting on Sept. 8, at which point the borough should have a clearer picture on what adding to bonds in progress would entail.