By Paula Pyzik Scott

The Ada-Liberty Ambulance board held a regular meeting on Monday, December 16 which included discussion regarding the new three-bay ambulance building that is nearing completion at 530 N. Gilbert St. A portion of the board will also meet at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, December 19 with representatives from the Ada Council regarding the new traffic pattern created by ambulances exiting onto Gilbert St. This meeting will take place at the EMS station.

Some neighboring residents expressed surprise when the ambulance bay was constructed. They expected the new building to be sleeping quarters for EMS staff.

In November 2022, Ada voters approved a 2 mill levy to generate $213K annually. The brochure provided to voters said it would fund “a potential building addition to accommodate sleeping quarters.” The funding was also needed to establish paid on-station staffing and to cover increased operating costs.

However, since the ballot initiative passed, the board discovered that Ohio Revised Code and Ohio Administrative Code requirements including tornado safety ratings brought a new building with sleeping quarters to an estimated cost of $700,000. They chose to build the ambulance bay structure at a cost of approximately $400,000 and to later remodel the main EMS building to create sleeping quarters, kitchen, offices and a meeting room. 2025 appropriations for this remodeling were set at $40K at Monday’s meeting.

Recent discussions at Ada Council meetings and Liberty Township Trustees meeting have raised the question of whether signs or lights are needed to alert drivers and pedestrians of ambulances exiting the building. Concerns about losing on-street parking have also been voiced.

At Monday’s meeting it was noted that the Ada-Liberty Fire Department has one yellow and black sign on with the image of a fire truck on Main St. to indicate the presence of fire truck traffic. There was also a brief discussion about when ambulance crews use lights and when they use sirens.

The EMS station is located on N. Gilbert St. some 300 feet from State Route 81/W. North Ave. There are eight homes north of the station, three on the east and five on the west. The lot opposite the ambulance bay and its driveway is currently undeveloped. See map from the Hardin County Assessor’s office below.