CASPER, Wyo. — An empty lot in the Old Yellowstone District of downtown Casper has been chosen as the site for the future Casper Fire-EMS Station 1, Deputy Chief Devin Garvin told Oil City News this week.
The new station was one of four projects the voters approved, and city officials said this week that the tax is on track to collect the target $18.2 million by the end of the third quarter next year.
In the November 2024 general election, over 68% of Casper voters approved using an optional sixth-cent sales tax to raise $4.4 million toward land acquisition and design of the new Station 1, which was built on First and David Street in 1976.
Sheridan-based Arete Design Group has been hired by the city to work with it on the right design for the new site. Casper’s public engagement director, Jolene Martinez, told Oil City News the parcel has been owned by the city for some time.
Garvin explained that Station 1 is the last with open, dormitory-style quarters, which are less than ideal given the modern understanding of firefighters’ need for personal space to decompress and preserve every scrap of sleep they can get.
“The bunk room back here is rather noisy,” Garvin said. “And you can’t find a place in this station to actually separate yourself from everybody else.”
The station regularly takes over 20 calls a day, and the calls come in at all times. Garvin said not everyone may be needed, but they’re likely to be woken up by the hustle. He pointed out that the wall of the battalion commanders’ bunks is shared with the parking lot where engines and other heavy apparatuses return to the bay.
All on-duty firefighters at the other stations have a bedroom door they can shut. The rooms are generally shared with off-duty members of the other two shifts.
Casper Fire-EMS Chief Jacob Black previously told the Casper City Council that the station is no longer properly equipped to handle current communication requirements and vehicle configurations. Engineer Bridget Miller said Stations 1 and 3 have the widest range of fully staffed apparatuses, which means more space is needed for both equipment and personnel.
Black previously explained that the newer stations also keep more space between the living quarters and the areas for decontaminating bunker gear, which gets infused with the toxic, carcinogenic compounds released from materials in fires.
