Have you voted? Ballots due May 19

Derrith Schmidt
8 hours ago
2 min read

Please vote YES for bond to rebuild LO South shore fire station and tell your friends and family in LO.

Every vote counts!

Published in LO Review

Excellent summary by Jeff Gudman

OPINION: Here’s why we need a rebuilt Lake Oswego fire station

Published 5:00 am Monday, May 11, 2026

By Jeff Gudman

The time has come to vote to tear down and rebuild the South Shore Fire Station. A first-rate quality of life is not possible without a first-rate infrastructure and that includes the four fire stations in our wonderful city.

Let’s examine seven reasons to vote for the tear down and rebuild.

The South Shore Station has reached the end of its useful life. The station was built in 1971, which makes it 55 years old. In the last 55 years the standards for a first-rate fire station have changed significantly, not the least of which being the size of fire trucks and their better technology. One result of the passage of time and changes in standards means renovating the existing station is not cost effective.
The city needs a fire station in the southeast quadrant of town to maintain the current level of system-wide service. Although all four stations are capable of covering for each other, using a dynamic approach to usage with all four stations permits the department and the city to operate at the highest standards with respect to response times. That saves lives.
A new, replacement fire station should be built to meet the needs of the city for the next 50-to-75 years. The long-term projected size of the station to meet current and future requirements is more than the size of the current station.
The current location is optimal. Multiple locations that might meet all the criteria for a replacement station were examined.
Alternatives, including renovating the existing station, were deemed infeasible from space requirement and cost standpoints. The current building is not seismically sound, has inadequate vehicle and apparatus storage, a roof needs to be replaced, a HVAC system needs to be replaced and/or upgraded, group bathrooms lack privacy and equitable accommodations and inadequate separation between living and office space limits opportunities for professional coaching.
There has been and continues to be wide-spread community outreach to inform and persuade about the importance of replacing the station and maintaining high standards.
The most viable funding source is a voter approved general obligation bond. It would be nice if the city had sufficient internal funds to replace the station like was done for the operations/maintenance center and the City Hall/Police Station. It does not.

Not maintaining and ultimately replacing infrastructure is easy because the costs are unforeseen for decades. Simply put, we must consistently support most infrastructure — and accept the tradeoffs that entails — to ensure a high quality of life.