Pinole Council Changes Its Mind Again; Approves Fire Staffing Grant

The Pinole City Council has reversed course once more and accepted a $1.24 million federal grant that will help re-open a closed fire station.

The council voted Tuesday night to approve the Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) grant.

The funds are expected to go toward the re-opening of Fire Station 74 in Pinole Valley.

In June, the council voted to turn down the grant after council members expressed concerns about associated costs if the station was operating again. The vote also came after Mayor Debbie Long had a heated exchange with representatives from the firefighters union.

In July, the Rodeo-Hercules Fire Department announced it would apply for the grant that Pinole had rejected.

On Tuesday night, the Pinole council also approved three design-related contracts for the long-discussed skateboard park at Pinole Valley Park.

The contracts were $19,700 for design services to Pillar Design Studios, $12,650 for engineering services to Cunha Engineering and $10,500 for environmental review services to Raney Planning and Management.

The skateboard park was first discussed in 2006 when a youngster named Max Glanz presented the idea to the council. In 2009, the council agreed to build the skate park along with four other projects with Measure WW funds.

However, the project stalled and the skateboard park budget was cut from $344,000 to $112,000.

In May, though, the council approved a site near the baseball diamond's left field fence for the skateboard park.

The budget has increased to $213,400. The design process is expected to be finished by the end of this year with construction starting next year.

Glanz just graduated from Pinole Valley High School and is still pushing for the park to be built.