By NICK GOSNELL
Hutch Post
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — The Hutchinson City Council passed the lease to allow for construction of the new fire station on the Kansas State Fairgrounds as part of its meeting Tuesday. Hutchinson Fire Chief Steven Beer said it will be early next year before they have the plans.
"They're about 90% done with the plans and the architect stuff," Beer said. "They're looking at probably around mid-January by the time the plans are done. It's my understanding the plans are hung up at the state level, with some of the drainage and stuff like that. That has to be approved at the state level. In all reality, we're probably looking to go out to bid around the first of February."
It is the intent of Hutch Fire to work around the fair's schedule during construction.
"We're looking probably toward the end of 2022 maybe the first part of 2023 before we're done here," Beer said. "We want to make sure during the fair that there's no outside construction going on. If we have the building up by then, we want to work with them. We don't want the building to be a distraction during the ten days of the fair. We want to make sure it's all fenced off so people aren't walking in on the construction area, just a lot of little logistics that the fair requested we do during construction."
Beer is hopeful that with some of the costs of materials beginning to drop from peak levels, that the station will come in at budget.
"I think some of the steel girders are what's going to hang us up on some of the roof-type stuff," Beer said. "I heard the delays are up to 15 months on that type of steel work. We'll see when the bid comes out, but I think with some of the stuff coming back down, I think we're going to be okay."
The lease of the ground from the fair is a 99-year lease at $1 a year. The lease motion passed unanimously.