Peninsula Township is pursuing plans to replace its main fire station – Station 1 in Mapleton next to Peninsula Market – with a new one on township property directly north of the township hall on Center Road. Trustees recently unanimously approved architectural and site work contracts for the estimated $8 million new station, which Chief Fred Gilstorff said would provide adequate training and living space for firefighters, public meeting and emergency shelter areas, and ADA-compliant and energy-efficient features.

Station 1 – which was built in 1946 and added on to in 1981 – is showing “major deterioration” throughout the building, according to Gilstorff, including cracks in the walls and floors and issues with water pipes and heating systems. It’s neither ADA-compliant nor energy efficient, he said. The station doesn’t have adequate space for employees, equipment, or training – which Gilstorff said was a safety and morale issue, as staff are squeezed into a “box” – and sits in the collapse zone of a tower and high-voltage wires. Station 1 was built when firefighters were primarily volunteers, Gilstorff said, rather than full-time staff living on-site. The fire chief said equipment valued at hundreds of thousands of dollars often sits outside because the facility is so tight that it takes too long to carefully back them in and out when needed in an emergency.

Both Gilstorff and previous chiefs have discussed the need to replace Station 1 for years, he said. However, the construction of Station 3 – which took place in 2020 near the corner of Center and Swaney roads – took top priority to ensure northern Old Mission residents had adequate service. With that project complete, Gilstorff said it was now time to focus on Station 1.

“This is not a new issue,” he said. “I feel that now is the time to get it done...in order to take care of our fire department and give us the ability to take care of our residents.” Gilstorff said the current Mapleton property is too small to accommodate the type of long-term facility the fire department needs, adding that trying to modify or upgrade the existing building would be putting a ”Band-Aid” on the problem.

Gilstorff searched for property for two years before identifying township land directly north of the township hall as the best solution. The site would have shared curb cuts, parking areas, and public access between the township hall and fire station, which the fire chief said would be more convenient for residents. The new station would also have space to accommodate community police officers from the Grand Traverse Sheriff’s Office who work on Old Mission.

Architect Ray Kendra of Environment Architects said a training room/community meeting space could accommodate up to 175-200 people. That room could be used for overflow meeting space for the township hall or to shelter residents during emergencies. Kendra, who designed Station 3, said the new Station 1 would have similar aesthetics, and energy-efficient design components will be considered. 

“This building will be here 50, 60 years servicing this community,” Gilstorff said. “We put a lot of thought into this trying to be as futuristic as possible so it covers everything.”

Township trustees were enthusiastic about the proposal. Trustee Rudy Rudolph pointed out while most townships are laid out in a six-by-six-mile square in which it’s easy to centrally locate a fire station, Peninsula Township is unique in its “long and narrow” geography. “This puts us in a position where we need multiple manned stations,” he said. Peninsula Township also has an aging population that “requires more medical resources than a lot of places would,” he said.

The high cost of housing means the township needs adequate on-site living space in order to accommodate professional firefighters commuting in and living at the stations during their shifts, which sometimes extend over multiple days, Rudolph said. Trustee Dave Sanger agreed. “This really is a place of living, not (just) a place of working,” he said. “We need this.” Township Clerk Becky Chown expressed concerns about the number of trees that would need to be cleared, but she expressed satisfaction with Kendra’s answer that the team would preserve as many trees as possible and plant new ones to replace those removed.

While the new station is estimated to cost $8 million, Kendra cautioned that “until you get the bids, you don’t know what the numbers really are.” Gilstorff said he’s exploring multiple funding options, including conventional mortgages and bonding, that would allow the fire department to amortize the construction costs over 20 to 25 years. Funding will likely include an increase to the fire department’s millage rate, he said, which is currently at 2.6 mills. He estimated that could be increased by up to .5 mills – bringing the total to 3.1 mills – though Trustee Maura Saunders said Peninsula Township could likely offset a significant part of the project cost by selling the existing Station 1 property.

Township trustees unanimously approved moving ahead with the next phase of the project, including a $203,749.88 contract with Environment Architects for architectural/project management services and a $55,000 contract with Gourdie Fraser for site work. Next steps will include presenting a special use permit (SUP) request to the township planning commission, going out for construction bids, and presenting those bids to the township board for approval. Gilstorff estimated that last step could take place in early spring, meaning construction on the new Station 1 could start next May or June.