Gentry Station Delayed, Finish Date TBA

The new Gentry Fire Station has fallen behind schedule and the timeline to complete the new building is unclear.

Putnam Fire Chief Jeff Hicks said he hoped the station would be operational by this point but the construction company has yet to get materials to the job site. Hicks said the delay will cost the Gentry community money until the station is up and running.

“If their insurance company uses the ISO rating system, and about seventy-five percent of them do, it’s actually costing them money,” Hicks said. “If they live within five road miles of that station then they’ll drop a point. And that’s the difference between not having any fire protection and having a fire station, one point. They go from a ten to a nine.”

Hicks said the construction company had several jobs to complete before the fire station but he does not know what actually caused the delay. Hicks said he does not know when the project will begin but it should take about three months to get the station operational once work starts.

“All we need is just a bay to put the truck in and then that would actually qualify,” Hicks said. “But I can’t, my hands are tied until, I’ve got two new tankers also to get added to ISO and a class A engine that’s going to be added in to our ISO but I’m waiting on that station.”

Hicks said response times will continue to be delayed for the Gentry community until the new station is online. Hicks said the closest station to that area is Station 31 in Bloomington Springs.

“I’m not sure if it’s been a materials issue or work issue or weather or a combination of all three if I was guessing,” Hicks said. “I know the last time we spoke to them was in November and there were three jobs ahead of us at that point.”