COLUMBUS – The Columbus Fire Department is working on an expansion to their building on Peak Street to add more living space for firefighters.

According to Columbus Fire Chief Tony Priester, the expansion is identical to the right side of the building adjacent to the garage for fire trucks.

The expansion will include two bedrooms, two and a half bathrooms, a gym, storage space and kitchenette, and will take three months to build, according to Priester.

“This project came about because of the call volume increasing to more than 1,500 calls a year,” Priester explained. “We had three paid firefighters and EMTs working 24-7, 365 days a year, and it got to the point where we needed to add three new paid firefighters, two per 24-hour shift, as the call volume increased.”

Priester said when the station was built in 1992, no living arrangements were added to the building. The first expansion occurred in 2004, and the new expansion is going to make the building look like a “uniform structure.”

The expansion will cost $260,000 and is being funded by generous donations, according to Priester. Myron Yoder of Trademark Contractors is the general contractor and says the expansion measures 62 feet long by 30 feet wide.

Priester said the donations have also helped the department pay off one of the fire trucks bought last year.

“This expansion is dedicated to the firefighters who established this department as well as our current and new firefighters,” Priester said.