By Jodie Newell | Casa Grande Dispatch
CASA GRANDE — Residents traveling on Pinal Avenue may have noticed the steady progress of construction at the new Casa Grande Fire Department Station 503 as it nears completion on Rodeo Road.
To say Fire Chief Dave Kean is excited would be an understatement. On Tuesday morning Kean talked to CORE Construction staff as well as Fire Inspector Ryan Pass as they discussed final plans and preparations for the 14,000-square-foot site.
At a cost of some $11.5 million, Kean said the latest addition to the CGFD signifies an exciting era for his department as an opening date in April draws closer.
“I’m just ecstatic and I mean this is awesome,” said Kean. “This will be the first public safety facility built in the city in around 12 to 13, years. We couldn’t have done it without the tremendous support from the City Council as well as our City Manager Larry Rains. They’ve been really supportive of this project from day one. They’ve been getting us the funds and getting us the stuff that we needed for it.”
Kean said the station could best be described as state of the art with a heavy emphasis on workplace and firefighter safety.
“The term state of the art is often loosely used but I can assure you and the residents of Casa Grande that this station has the most modern state of the art stuff in it,” said Kean, who said the building contains zoned, color coded areas relating to the activities undertaken by firefighters.
