CRANBERRY TWP — The Cranberry Volunteer Fire Company has outgrown its space at the Park Station on Route 19.

Members of the fire company presented plans for an expansion of the facility and a renovation at the Haine Fire Station to the township board of supervisors at the supervisors' meeting on Thursday.

Ed Hestin, fire company president, said the proposed work has the potential to help the company's retention and recruiting efforts.

“We want this to be viewed by potential new members, the new spaces we have, the ability to stay over,” he said. “We really do believe this is going to make a difference in recruiting and retention efforts.”

Supervisors will vote Thursday to authorize an agreement with RSSC Architects to prepare a final design and specifications for the proposed work for $96,000. The total project to expand Park Station and renovate Haine Station is expected to cost about $1.6 million, said Jerry Andree, township manager.

The three-story expansion at Park Station would be to the south of the existing building, between the building and Ernie Mashuda Drive. Park Station was built in 1995 and houses the fire and emergency services' three-person administrative staff.

The first floor would include a large social and work area, including a kitchen and day room, said Jeff Gooch, firefighter and the township's fire risk reduction coordinator. There will be an area for people who can work from home and also staff the station during the day.

The new space would add three more offices to the space and allow the company to centralize administrative responsibilities, Hestin said. Some of the fire company's offices are located at the Haine Station.

There will also be a dedicated area built out front on the Route 19 side of the building to store and view the historic Pirsch fire engine. The 1928 Pirsch was the fire company's first truck, bought in 1959, and it is still used in parades.

“Although it continues to operate today … we know we won't use it someday for shows and parades,” Hestin said. “We want this to be a museum of a very important fire apparatus.”

The basement of the expansion would be a gym area with locker rooms and fitness equipment, Gooch said. The equipment is currently in the mezzanine area that is open to the garage bays where the trucks are housed.

The second floor would be dedicated for living/sleeping spaces for members to stay overnight, Hestin said. There will be six private rooms and one bunk room with three bunk beds. There will also be locker rooms and restrooms.

Firefighters have dedicated crew nights where they are assigned to respond to calls. With the new bunk space, firefighters could stay at the station overnight on their dedicated crew nights, hopefully reducing response times, Hestin said.

“At any one time, we can actually have 12 firefighters on station overnight,” he said.

The Haine Station, on Haine School Road, will get some upgrades as part of the project. The station would get new flooring and lighting, the bathrooms would be remodeled and the space would be reconfigured to account for office space being moved to Park Station.

“The interior is basically going to get a complete upgrade,” Hestin said.

If approved, construction would begin in spring 2018 and be complete by November.