LCRA representatives present a $25,000 grant to the Mountain Home Volunteer Fire Department for improvements to the firehouse. The grant is part of LCRA’s Community Development Partnership Program. Pictured, from left to right, are: Jack Clarke, firefighter; Brien Alexander, Mountain Home VFD fire chief; Lori A. Berger, LCRA Board member; and Steve Dyer, LCRA Governmental Affairs representative.
The Mountain Home Volunteer Fire Department is upgrading its firehouse and community meeting room, and adding a place for first responders to stay during an emergency, thanks to a $25,000 community development grant from the Lower Colorado River Authority.
The Mountain Home VFD will use the Community Development Partnership Program grant to bring the facility into compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, as well as add a place for emergency workers to sleep during an event.
Organizations use the fire station’s community room to host public meetings, training classes, fundraisers and more, but the station isn’t fully ADA-compliant. The department will install a new accessible ramp with handrails and pave the front parking area, complete with handicap striping.
“Our meeting room is one of only a very small handful of options for hosting community meetings within Kerr County,” says Mountain Home VFD Fire Chief Brien Alexander. “Increasing accessibility at the station will allow greater civic participation.”
The department also plans to finish out the second floor of the fire station to house emergency response workers as needed.
“Our service territory is large, and many of our volunteer firefighters live miles from the station,” Alexander said. “When our county is dealing with an ice storm, for example, it improves safety immensely to have first responders stay at the station, rather than travelling miles to and from home. Having access to a bed and a shower allows first responders to rest and recharge – whether that’s our own team or neighboring agencies who have come to assist.”
Alexander expects the facility improvements to be complete by late summer 2019.
The community grant is one of a number of grants recently awarded through LCRA’s Community Development Partnership Program. The program provides economic development and community assistance grants to cities, counties, volunteer fire departments, regional development councils and other nonprofit organizations in LCRA’s wholesale electric and water service areas. The program is part of LCRA’s effort to give back to the communities it serves.
Applications for the next round of grants will be accepted Jan. 1-31, 2019. More information is available at
lcra.org/cdpp.
About LCRA
The Lower Colorado River Authority serves customers and communities throughout Texas by managing the lower Colorado River; generating and transmitting electric power; providing a clean, reliable water supply; and offering access to nature at more than 40 parks, recreation areas and river access sites along the Texas Colorado River, from the Hill Country to the Gulf Coast. LCRA and its employees are committed to enhancing the lives of Texans through water stewardship, energy and community services. LCRA was created by the Texas Legislature in 1934. For more information, visit
lcra.org.
Media Contact
Clara Tuma
512–578–3292
clara.tuma@lcra.org
Source: LCRA Business News
