Development work starts on new fire station on Binghamton’s north side

BINGHAMTON, N.Y. — Work is underway on a project to develop a new fire station on the north side of Binghamton. Built in 1960, the current north side fire station at 39 West State St. is nearing the end of its useful life, the office Binghamton Mayor Jared Kraham said. It’s estimated that repairs to the building would cost millions of dollars. “We’re advancing plans to create a neighborhood anchor and state-of-the-art public safety facility — the North Side deserves it,” Kraham said in the announcement. “With a multi-year approach, we’ll work to secure state and federal grants to ease the burden on Binghamton taxpayers. From new fire apparatus to facilities, this administration is steadfast in our support of first responders and the lifesaving work they do.” Kraham first announced plans to build a new fire station to serve the city’s north side last fall in his 2025 budget address, his office noted.

Following a public request for qualifications process this past spring, the City of Binghamton hired CPL of Vestal to provide professional design services for the predevelopment portion of the north side fire-station project. In June, Binghamton City Council authorized Kraham to enter into an agreement with CPL for predevelopment services, expected to cost $100,000. CPL will work with the Binghamton Fire Department and other city officials on building and site programming, site selection, and conceptual design of the new facility. A task force from the fire department — including Chief Alan Gardiner, Assistant Chief Thomas Edwards, and Captain David Holleran — is helping the predevelopment team in studying emergency response time and call volume data to make a data-driven decision regarding the location of the new station, the City of Binghamton said. The work will also support the city in preparing competitive grant applications to fund the final design and construction of the new station, per the announcement.