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09/26/2016 04:26 PMHARTFORD, CT Sept. 26, 2016 – Branford's legislative delegation announced today that they have secured a major state investment for Branford's Indian Neck Fire Station. A $500,000 STEAP grant has been approved to replace the existing volunteer Company 9 fire house located at 6-10 Linden Avenue. Modernizing this fire house has been one of Branford's top infrastructure priorities for several years.
"A full third of Branford's land mass and population falls within the response area of the Indian Neck Fire House, making it absolutely necessary that the old facility be modernized," said Senator Ted Kennedy, Jr. "This new fire station will provide essential services and safety to thousands of community members, while also enhancing the economic and social well-being of the town. I am glad that we were able to collaborate with state and local officials, as well as our local firefighters, to make this happen. Our first responders are there for us; it's important that we are there for them."
"There is a lot of work that goes into a STEAP grant. It takes diligence and dedication by many people. Our first responders at Indian Neck deserve to have up-to-date first class facilities," said Representative Lonnie Reed.
"Company 9 outgrew its 90-year-old station years ago and emergency response times and their ability to serve the community were suffering because of it. Thanks to this new station, the volunteers from Company 9 can better serve the tens of thousands of residents in Indian Neck and Pine Orchard and I'm grateful to have worked with Captain Mullen, Chief Mahoney, and my colleagues in the Branford delegation to finally make this new station a reality," said Representative Sean Scanlon.
"I am pleased the town of Branford has been awarded a STEAP Grant to build a new station for Indian Neck/Pine Orchard Company 9. The new facility will meet the needs of the volunteer first responders, and enable Company 9 to minimize response time to emergency calls," said Branford First Selectman James B. Cosgrove.
The STEAP grant announced today will allow Branford to replace the current Indian Neck Fire House with a new structure that will be compliant with federal standards for storm resiliency. Company 9, which operates out of the Indian Neck Fire House, serves a large portion of Branford that includes some critical operations, such as the town's water treatment plant on Block Island Road and the Eversource substation on Meadow Street. Company 9 also protects the many residential properties and rapidly-expanding small businesses in the Indian Neck region of Branford, which are often isolated from the main part of town during weather emergencies.