City: New home needed for public safety
Owatonna Chief of Police Jeff Mundale laughs while showing the media the department’s training ground for hand-to-hand self defense drills. The training room is located inside of a vault once used by the original business operating on the grounds: a bank. Staff photo by Johnnie Phillips
The Owatonna Fire Department (OFD) and Owatonna Police Department (OPD) both hosted guided walk-throughs of their facilities to local media last week to highlight the challenges of their current buildings.
Both departments face certain challenges stemming from aging infrastructure and inadequate space and housing – with both looking for a new home.
City officials say, “The city is planning to build a new joint public safety center to meet the needs of our community and address the challenges of our aging police and fire department facilities.”
No dollar estimate has been announced yet for the project, though city officials are reaching out to state lawmakers to help fund the center.
The tour started in the firehouse, where major concerns revolve around the aging infrastructure and lack of space in the over-100-year-old station.
Fire Chief Ed Hoffman noted that the building has water leaks in its basement – where equipment is stored – as well as cramped training space, inadequate space for emergency vehicles that prevents updating equipment, and an outdated decontamination space that potentially puts firefighters at risk of health concerns.
“Firefighting itself is carcinogenic. We’re afraid that our current layout is difficult for our firefighters to properly decontaminate after calls. With many of our volunteers coming in on call before going back to their employers, some of them don’t feel they have the time to shower afterward and properly decontaminate,” said Hoffman.
The department has a “shower within the hour” code of conduct that firefighters are supposed to follow in order to minimize the health risks of potentially dangerous chemicals.
However, Hoffman notes that his volunteers don’t always feel they can find the time to do so.
The tight quarters in the garage also makes it difficult to update equipment.
“We have limited space. We’d like to find a new tanker to replace our current one that’s gotten old now, but it’s hard to find a new one that fits our space without costing too much,” said Hoffman.
The department would also like to update its living quarters and hire a mental health consultant to help ensure the happiness of its firefighters.
The tour between departments then traveled to the Owatonna Police Station where Chief of Police Jeff Mundale led the tour.
Owatonna’s police headquarters is over 40 years old, but its glaring deficiency is the fact it was never actually intended to be used as a police station.
“It was originally a bank. Where we’re at in the lobby is actually where the drive through was. The main difficulty with this space is the lack of privacy it affords our community members who come in during some difficult times,” said Mundale.
According to him, privacy issues don’t just end in the lobby.
The department has one main intake door that leads directly into its main office where sensitive information is held.
Three levels of mixed, multi-purpose spaces also makes organization difficult.
“Our staff is sometimes going between the basement, first and second floors to move items like records, evidence and other important things. It doesn’t make for the most efficient workspace, but we’ve made it work. Hopefully in the future, we can have a space where it’s easier to keep everything secure and easy to navigate,” said Mundale.