Chelan County Fire District 5 plans innovative three-story training facility

MANSON – Chelan County Fire District 5 has unveiled ambitious plans for a state-of-the-art three-story training center at Fire Station 2, situated at 2010 Wapato Lake Road in Manson. The project, which was initiated almost a year ago in July 2022, aims to construct a 3,400-square-foot facility that incorporates ten storage containers. Notably, the center will also feature an aerial component for student training.

With a history dating back to its land ownership of 1.2 acres, Chelan County Fire District 5 expanded its footprint significantly with the acquisition of an additional 3.3 acres in 2018. This expansion has paved the way for the upcoming training center, providing ample space for the innovative facility.

Chelan County Fire District 5 currently awaits the approval of their conditional use permit application, and concurrent discussions are underway with the Washington State Department of Ecology regarding soil preparation for the construction.

The financial backing for this visionary project has already gained substantial traction. The Cascade Public Infrastructure Fund demonstrated their support with a generous grant of $100,000, awarded through Chelan County on October 17, 2022. This funding injection will defray a portion of the total construction cost, with the remaining expenses expected to be covered by dedicated reserve funds.

The architectural framework of the building resulted from a collaborative synergy between Lieutenant / EMT / Training Coordinator Raynor Baker and Chief  Arnold Baker. Their creative input was further enhanced by the expertise of architect Paul Coppock from The DOH Associates. The execution of the engineering intricacies was entrusted to local engineer Kevin Shaw, who brings a wealth of experience in engineering structures utilizing storage containers. Lieutenant Raynor Baker shared his thoughts on securing Shaw's involvement, stating, "...we found a great engineer that was excited to pick up this project, and that was really critical to get because that was one of the things that the State Fire Marshal’s Office said we’re going to have problems [with], is finding an engineer who will do it.”

The driving force behind the establishment of this training center is to extend regional training opportunities and provide enhanced flexibility to Fire Academy students. By offering a localized training solution, students can now engage in daily training sessions without the added burden of seeking accommodation. This novel approach reduces the need for students to travel to the State Fire Academy in North Bend, thereby enabling them to concentrate solely on their training. Lieutenant Raynor Baker explained, “...I looked back at my training calendar in 2021 and we had 19 of our weekly drills that were out in the drill ground, doing, needing practical application in the drill ground. One of these was live fire and 18 of them were everything else. I designed this training center so that I can do all of those. So, it’s not a live fire training center only. It’s rescue, it’s rope work, it’s ladders, it’s everything that we do in our training. Now we have a drill ground to go and do that. And we can do live fire in there too.”

The Chelan County Fire District 5's upcoming training center stands as a testament to innovation, collaboration, and an unwavering commitment to enhanced firefighting training.

Katie Lindert: 509-731-3211 or katie@ward.media