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City of Williamsburg moves forward on fire station, final agreement expected in July

The fire station at North Boundary Street was built in 1977. (WYDaily file/Andrew Harris)
The fire station at North Boundary Street was built in 1977. (WYDaily file/Andrew Harris)

Williamsburg City Council voted unanimously Jan. 14 to discuss an interim agreement with a contracting company for the fire station on North Boundary Street.

The interim agreement between the city and David A. Nice Builders is to demolish the current fire station located at 440 N. Boundary St. and build a new 31,000-square-foot station on the same lot.

According to a Jan. 14 news release from the City of Williamsburg, the interim agreement “allows the design work to begin,” and “architectural firms Guernsey-Tingle Architects and Stewart-Cooper-Newell Architects are part of the David A. Nice design-build team for this Project.”

Stewart-Cooper-Newell Architects is the same company that designed the James City-Bruton Fire Station in Toano. Guernsey-Tingle Architects is a local architectural firm with past projects in New Town, Busch Gardens, and with the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation.

City staff are expected to present a comprehensive agreement to the City Council, including the final pricing and design elements, as early as July.

Only when a comprehensive agreement is approved can the demolition proceed in the following months.

“Our community had the great fortune of receiving excellent proposals for our new fire station,” City Mayor Doug Pons said in a prepared statement from the news release.

The city received seven bid proposals for the fire station in August 2020. Three contractors continued to the final phase of the process, including the release of their conceptual drawings to the public, the Architectural Review Board, the Planning Commission, and firefighters for input.

The City released a public survey back in December for residents to choose from the three station designs.

The survey closed on Jan. 3.

RELATED STORY: City of Williamsburg looks to resident input on new fire station design

David A. Nice Builders was the most preferred in all these reviews, according to the news release.

“The city engaged in an extensive process with good input and participation from the fire department, the Architectural Review Board, the Planning Commission, the City Manager’s Office, and the community,” Pons said in a prepared statement. “I commend everyone for putting forward the good effort to get us to this point, and we look forward to working with David A. Nice Builders on this important project.”

The City solicited bids for the design and build of the new fire station through the Public-Private Education Facilities and Infrastructure Act (PPEA). The PPEA Process allowed the City Council to choose its preferred proposal for the design and build, according to the news release.

Discussion of approving the interim agreement will happen at the City Council’s February meeting.

To view upcoming City Council meetings, click here.

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