Board approves design work for fire dispatch remodel after scope and budget changes

The Onalaska Board of Public Works and Utilities on July 7 approved professional design services to advance a planned remodel of the city fire department dispatch office after staff warned the project had grown in scope and cost.

The board voted unanimously to authorize the design work, $18,006.25, for architectural and permitting services that staff said are needed because converting a lieutenant’s office into a sleep room changes the room’s occupancy classification and triggers additional fire‑protection and state review requirements. "We are not exceeding current limits, but the limit that is proposed to be enacted, we would be exceeding," said Jared Holter, describing testing and treatment needs tied to PFAS sampling and the broader utilities work in the packet. Jeremy Southworth, identified in packet materials as the current fire chief, told the board the change in occupancy and permitting needs pushed the project beyond the original contractor's square‑foot estimate.

Why it matters: staff said the remodel replaces 26‑year‑old counters, updates flooring and IT/electrical infrastructure and reconfigures the space to support individual workstations and, potentially, sleeping quarters that would let the department staff a second station. The board was told the total project estimate with contingency is now about $130,000 and staff have proposed an additional $70,000 in the 2027 capital improvement program to cover construction costs.

Board members pressed staff on timing and continuity. "If this is approved tonight and then forwarded and approved at the council meeting, we would start the design kickoff," Holter said, estimating design completion by the end of the year or early next year. Southworth said temporary workstations and a condensed construction schedule would limit operational impacts; staff noted there could be a roughly two‑week period where duties shift within the station.

Ald. Jim Benash asked whether a video or three‑dimensional rendering could be prepared to illustrate the changes; staff said 3‑D renderings are an additional, nonfunded service (example fee listed at $1,000) and that a small office‑layout rendering is already available to send to board members. The motion on the design services — described in the packet as detailed hourly work by SEH — was approved by voice vote.

The board’s next steps: with design authorization in hand, staff will advance permitting and specifications and will only bid construction if funding is included in an upcoming CIP bond; if construction funding is not approved, staff said designs can be completed and shelved until funding is available.