By JAN LARSON McLAUGHLIN
BG Independent News
Bowling Green is bringing in some experts to help the city find a new home for its oldest fire station.
The sites of Bowling Green’s east side fire station and electric division building are so hot that the city may sell them as part of the city’s proposed Gateway Division.
That means the fire station and electric division would have to find new homes.
To make sure an appropriate spot is found for the fire station, the Ohio Fire Chiefs Association has been asked to study the building, the fire and EMS runs, the staffing, and the city as a whole. The organization will be asked to recommend the best location for a new station.
Mayor Mike Aspacher said the new station would very likely remain on the east side of the city. The newer fire station, built in the 1990s, is located on Pearl Street on the west side of the community.
“I would think most likely it would stay on the east side of the railroad,” Aspacher said of the new site.
Aspacher said that Bowling Green State University President Rodney Rogers has commented on the value of having the east side fire station so close to the campus. So BGSU officials will be involved in the discussions, the mayor said.
The current fire station was built in 1984 at the corner of Thurstin and East Court streets. The electric division building next door, near the corner of Thurstin and East Wooster, was constructed in 1971 and went through a facelift in 2018.
The new location of the electric division is not as sensitive, and won’t require as much space. “We’re actively looking where that could then be located,” Aspacher said.
Bowling Green officials are looking at the northwest corner of East Wooster and Thurstin streets as a possible place to jumpstart development in the new Gateway District, which includes the property along East Wooster Street from Thurstin and Manville to Enterprise Street.
Of course this all depends on the city finding a developer willing to build the multi-use development planned by the city.
“This is potentially the most valuable piece of property for development,” Aspacher said. “It really could serve as a gateway to our downtown area.”
