Design plans are being completed for a new facility for the Vestal Volunteer Emergency Squad.

The service has operated from a former community center property on Myrtle Street in Twin Orchards since 1976.

Major flood events in 2006 and 2011 prompted squad and town officials to decide to relocate the facility.

The new squad headquarters will be located on the Vestal Parkway, just west of the Route 26 interchange.

The Vestal Volunteer Emergency Squad has operated from a Myrtle Street site for more than four decades. (Photo: Bob Joseph/WNBF News)
The Vestal Volunteer Emergency Squad has operated from a Myrtle Street site for more than four decades. (Photo: Bob Joseph/WNBF News)
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The structure will be built near the Vestal Public Library and the town museum. The project is expected to cost about $2 million.

Town supervisor John Schaffer said a federal grant will cover most of the cost for the squad relocation.

The new facility will be about the same size as what now exists on Myrtle Street but it will be configured differently. Schaffer said it will include sleeping quarters, a kitchen, a meeting room and space to house several emergency response vehicles.

Todd Allis, assistant chief of operations for the squad, said he expects the design plans for the new facility should be finalized within a week.

Construction could start within a year and the new squad headquarters should be operational in 2021.

After the squad is relocated, the town parks department operations will be moved to the Myrtle Street site.

The new Vestal Volunteer Emergency Squad headquarters will be located near the town museum on the Vestal Parkway. (Photo: Bob Joseph/WNBF News)
The new Vestal Volunteer Emergency Squad headquarters will be located near the town museum on the Vestal Parkway. (Photo: Bob Joseph/WNBF News)
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Contact WNBF News reporter Bob Joseph: bob@wnbf.com

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