Enterprise Fire Station/Library

New fire station and library combination approved for City of Enterprise

The City of Enterprise, located about 5 miles southeast of Abilene in Dickinson County, will use volunteer labor from the community valued at $168,972 and $253,500 in KAN STEP funding from the Kansas Department of Commerce (Commerce) to construct a new fire station and library combination.

The 6,600 square foot facility will accommodate a fire station and library, and will be located in downtown Enterprise. The fire station will include a meeting room for firefighter training and for community meetings. The new station will also provide better protection from the elements for equipment and fire trucks. A new library will be housed above the meeting room, replacing the existing library, which is not structurally sound.

City Superintendent Paul Froelich will be the lead sparkplug on the project. This is Enterprise's second KAN STEP project, the prior being improvement to their water system in 2003.

According to Froelich, Enterprise's present library is housed in a building that once was part of a building where Carrie Nation smashed a bar. The building has had extensive termite damage. For its community size, Enterprise has a large library, nearing 17,000 volumes.

Enterprise's present fire station is housed in a metal building that has only 3/4 inch of insulation. Last winter the heating bill ran nearly $1,200 per month. Rodents may come and go as they please and the firefighters have nowhere to meet or train.

The community is pleased that the new building will incorporate natural lay of land to accommodate a full basement under the library (which will have the entrance on Factory Street). The fire station will be to the east side. There will be a new library with a large meeting/training room in the lower level and a expanded fire station. All areas of the new building will meet ADA requirements since each will have a grade level entrance.

Site preparations require the removal of an old warehouse building. That structure is being re-located to just west of the city's present shop.

Project architect is Rosemann & Associates, Overland Park, KS; grant administration will be by North Central Kansas Planning Commission. The Kansas Rural Water Association will provide technical assistance and inspection services.

KAN STEP is a self-help program that enables small communities to make major infrastructure improvements. Local people volunteer labor and services or "sweat equity," while the Kansas Department of Commerce provides funding for materials and technical services. An acronym for Kansas Small Towns Environment Program, KAN STEP gives small Kansas communities an opportunity to do projects they couldn't otherwise afford. The funding is provided through the federal Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program.