County Under Fire Over Rescue Station Spending

Thanks in large part to the extensive research completed by Peter Wurzer of the Albemarle Truth in Taxation Alliance, the Daily Progress has picked up the story of how Albemarle County residents are concerned about the significant cost overruns involved with the Hollymead Fire Rescue Station. The station's grand opening occurs at 2pm this afternoon.

The new station, originally budgeted at $3.7m in 2004, ended up costing nearly $5.9m. In response to concerns over the cost, county spokesperon Lee Catlin mentioned the needs for extra community rooms, office space, bunkrooms, and UVA design requirements.

While we take no issue with the need for a new fire rescue station in Hollymead, the issue is: should it have cost $5.9m, nearly 60% over budget?

• Should it contain a community meeting room when we already have on available at nearby Hollymead School?
• Should the bathrooms have four different kinds of tiles with tiled accent courses driving up costs?
• Should we have sculptured ceilings in the main hallway and lounge?
• Is a floor medallion needed at the intersection of the main hallways?
• Did we really have to have a portico on the back and four columns on the front?

The questions are not merely academic at this point, as there are two more fire rescue stations in the works. Can we come back down to earth and build a structure that meets appropriate needs without careless spending of taxpayer dollars?

Undoubtedly, the architectural requirements at North Fork necessitated some higher costs for the Hollymead station. Nonetheless, this was known well in advance, and doesn't answer the question of why the estimated cost was calculated so badly during the plan's inception.

As plans for the two future stations get underway, taxpayers need to be wary of any estimate that's provided by the county. Why? Look no further than Hollymead.