San Luis Obispo County Fire Station 52 is closed for renovations until April. Eric Carreiro, a fire captain with CAL FIRE SLO, shared what upgrades are in store and how the station's operations will be impacted.
"We are just temporarily relocating our response apparatus to here on Airport Road," Capt. Carreiro said.
The six-week renovation will include minor interior improvements to the station on 4050 Branch Drive in Paso Robles.
"I don't believe this station has had any major renovations since it was put in service in about 1997," Carreiro said. "Some of the countertops were peeling and it was due for some of those upgrades."
Other improvements include minor upgrades to the kitchen and office and ADA-compliant installations.
Carreiro stressed that while their crew operates out of Station 98 for the next six weeks, they will continue to respond as usual.
"The system is still at its normal operating level, and we're just kind of moved over here for the time being," Carreiro said.
Some community members may notice a slight delay in response time.
"At times, that’s not going to be impacted at all. Other times, it will just be slightly delayed,” Carreiro said.
He says response times vary, with their temporary location even benefiting some residents.
“In certain areas, we're going to be faster," Carreiro said.
Northern SLO County resident Carlotta Clymer said she’s never had an issue getting a quick response from the fire department.
"They were there immediately," Clymer said.
Even with the six-week renovation period, she isn’t concerned.
"Not worried... they're very efficient," she said.
