The Orange Fire Station No. 2 will be getting an addition soon after the Orange City Council approved a construction contract plus extra money for the project.
The council met Tuesday in a regular session. Fire Chief David Frenzel said the station at 1901 Allie Payne Road was built in 1979 on land donated by Nelda C. Stark. The 3500 square foot station cost $115,000 then.
The low bid to add 750 square feet addition was $122,800, he said. The two bids received were more than the budgeted $97,000. The council agreed to spend $25,000 for the contingency fund to pay for the project. G&G Enterprises of Orange was the low bidder.
The addition will include a fitness center, an additional bathroom to accommodate women plus a separate equipment room.
Though the council unanimously agreed to that expenditure, District 2 Councilor Wayne Guidry balked at using contingency money for unbudgeted computer expenditure. Guidry said the city will be planning a new budget soon and he wants to have public budget workshops to see what city departments need.
Guidry was the only member voting against spending $54,240 from contingency for the computer upgrade. IT Manager Mike Zeto recommended the upgrade from Tyler Technologies. Zeto said the upgrade will include programs that can be used for code enforcement employees and could save money.
District 1 Councilor Pat Pullen, a retired police captain, said he worked with Zeto and trusts him. Besides Pullen, other councilors voting to spend the contingency money were Annette Pernell, Bill Mello and Larry Spears Jr. District 3 Councilor Essie Bellfield was absent.
The council appointed At-Large Position 5 Councilor Bill Mello to an unexpired term on the City of Orange Economic Development Corporation Board of Directors. He replaces Mary McKenna, a councilor who lost a re-election bid.
In other business, the council approved a change in garbage pickup schedules and costs for small businesses. The city has 188 small businesses that have been paying $50.20 a month to use the regular residential-sized garbage carts with a twice-a-week pickup schedule. Ramie Howlett, customer service manager, said some of the business owners complained that they do not need pickup two times a week.
Under the new system, the business garbage will be picked up once a week at a cost of $29 a month. Howlett said a business may order an additional cart for a fee.
The council approved on second reading an ordinance to allow day care centers in a commercial special zone. Also, a public hearing, with no comments, was held to make 1,161 acres of International Paper land as industrial. The council approved the change on first reading. Last year, the land was annexed by request from the company.
During a comments period, Councilor Guidry talked about the new splash pad at Navy Park. Earlier in the month, a grandmother complained that the splash pad was only a concrete circle with spray nozzles.
“The kids of Orange love it,” Guidry said. “The adults are not involved. It wasn’t built for them.”
However, he admitted the city could do better for the splash pad. The councilor, who represents Little Cypress, said he took his kids and they played in it for two to three hours. He plans to take them back during the summer.
Mayor Jimmy Sims presented proclamations for Motorcycle Safety and Awareness Month and for National Men’s Health Month.
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