PHOTO:
Firefighters Bryon Kimber and Kevin Gifford put to use their firefighting skills at the old Eagle Academy School facility purchased by Golden Valley Fire.
Golden Valley Fire officials announced they have purchased the Eagle Academy School at 423 S. Colorado Road. After the Eagle Academy closed its doors several years ago, the building has stood empty while investors tried to sell the nearly 13,000 square foot building which contains three classrooms, offices, conference room and a full gymnasium and the 10 acres it occupies. The property had been on the market for more than 15 months with an asking price of nearly $700,000. Fire Chief Thomas O’Donohue said the firefighters have been using the empty parking area for monthly Multi-Company Operations and driver training. O’Donohue continued; “The central location for training and the safety offered to the firefighters from not operating on the roadway made this the perfect training grounds”. The Fire District considered purchasing the property in May of 2011, but stopped the process due to the price. “We kept a close eye on the property since it was nearly the perfect location, size and now the price”. As the price continued to drop on the foreclosed property, the Board of Directors reconsidered and authorized the fire chief to negotiate within specific parameters. The final negotiated price was $125,000 dollars, a fraction of what it cost to construct just the building. The Fire District plans on utilizing the building and 10 acres for their training facility and making this a community building where organizations can use a larger meeting room. “The hub of many community functions is often the fire department, and we want to be an even bigger part of our community,” O’Donohue continued. Future plans in the works are to expand into a regional training facility utilizing grant funding and invite instructors from the National Fire Academy that can teach at the facility that require both indoor and outside venues.
