By ERIK SOKOLOWSKI
The Voorhees Fire District has drafted a resolution to express its opposition to the proposed merging of county police and fire services.
“Specifically, there was no clear cut way for the county to put together consolidated or regionalized departments, and without a plan how can you move forward? We don’t believe this would be a good fit for the residents of Voorhees, as it would be a detriment to their services.”
In other fire department news, the Voorhees Planning Board approved plans for a new fire station at its recent meeting.
The plans, completed over last three years, are in the process of being finalized and sent out to bid, Fire Chief Jim Pacifico said.
The new station will be built at the site of the existing station at 2002 South Burnt Mill Road.
The state of the art, 19,000-square foot station, will be about 10,000-square feet larger than the existing one, and drastically update the facilities.
“We’ll have full facilities at the new station,” Pacifico said. “New bunk rooms, gear rooms, training spaces, offices and a community room for the public and outside organizations. This will enable us to expand certain programs, and gives us a specific place for the Virtua Paramedic truck, giving residents quicker access to life support services.”
The new station will be fully ADA compliant, and the upgrades will surely please members and volunteers.
“We’ll have enough bunks now so that no one will be forced to sleep on the floor,” Pacifico said.
Depending on when bids return, construction will begin, and once construction begins, it should take about 18 to 24 months to complete, Pacifico said. Ground-breaking could be taking place as soon as April or May.
“We do need to replace the existing station,” Pacifico said. “We’ve outgrown the space from when it was built in the 1950s. In the past we have added on to existing facilities, and we can’t keep doing that. It’s like a big jigsaw puzzle, and not functional anymore as a fire station.”
The fire district’s fifth consecutive no-increase budget will be up for a vote on Saturday, Feb. 19. Any registered Voorhees resident may cast a ballot. Two, three-year seats will also be up for grabs, with Robert Caruso, Robert Dougherty, Bruce Karpf and Scott Minghenelli running for those seats.
Polls will be open from 2 p.m. to 9 p.m., and residents can vote at one of three locations:
Kresson Fire Station at 423 Cooper Road.
Kirkwood Fire Station at 2002 South Burnt Mill Road.
Ashland Presbyterian Church at 33 E. Evesham Road.
If you have any questions about your voting location, call 783–6630 ext. 0.
For more information about the Voorhees Fire District or if you are interested in becoming a volunteer, visit www.voorheesfire.org.
