Unfinished Fire Administration Building viewed by City Council

In the past few months, the major construction in downtown Grand Junction has been to help build the new Fire Administration Building. The City Council members were invited to tour the unfinished project today.

City Council members strapped on their hard hats viewed the almost finished Fire Administration Building. There's still some work to be done before it opens to the public this summer, but the project is on budget.

There are two floors to the building. The lower level is mainly for public use so it will make it easy for residents to come file a report. The upper level is where the majority of the fire staff will work and train.

Grand Junction City Fire Chief Ken Watkins says some major additions to the building are higher ceilings, training rooms and break-out rooms.

Watkins says, "We are probably the most excited to come back downtown and move into the new facilities. We’ve been in temporary quarters for what will be almost 2 years by the time we move back in."

This new building won't just benefit the 18 staff members, but also help with public safety and employment. About 70 percent of the workers for the project are local.    

This building is part 3 of a 4 part project for the police and fire department. Watkins says they've everything should be wrapped up and ready by June. The final project to remodel Fire Station 2 will begin in March. It is located off 24 and a quarter and Patterson.