Centerport Fire Department Gets Go-Ahead to Buy Former Gas Station Site

Voters approved a bond Tuesday night that will allow the Centerport Fire Department to  expand onto the property that houses a former gas station.

The vote was 301-47. The property in question, at the corner of Route 25A and Little Neck Road, is near the fire department headquarters, and was once considered for use as a 7-Eleven store. It has been used most recently as a storage yard for commercial vehicles.

Fire Commissioner Jack Geffken said the department hopes to take ownership in March, with rehabilitation work needed on the roof, soffits and awning of the three-bay building. He said the department would station its medical team there, along with some support vehicles

“We had our eye on it for a couple of years,” he said.  The fire department outlined its plan last week to the community, he said, and “We had overwhelming support” from the public.

The property was the center of controversy when the convenience store was first proposed for the site in 2010. Centerport residents objected to the store, saying that it would be out of character for the neighborhood, and eventually the plan fell through.

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