Jill Schramm/MDN Brent Lohnes, left, general manager for North Dakota operations with Hess holds a symbolic check representing a donation to the Minot Fire Department. He presented the grant Tuesday to the city, represented by Minot Mayor Shaun Sipma, second from left, and Battalion Chief Brent Weber and Fire Chief Kelli Kronschnabel, right, with the fire department.

A new fire station in northwest Minot is anticipated to cost nearly $4.2 million with the Minot City Council’s acceptance of a construction bid Tuesday.

The cost includes construction, engineering and contingency for Fire Station 5, which has been in planning for five years. In 2017, the city purchased land along Fourth Avenue Northwest on Minot’s west side and architectural design started. Construction was delayed during the pandemic due to budget issues.

The council accepted the low bids of Roers Construction, general contract, $2.62 million; C&C Plumbing and Heating, mechanical contract, $690,150; and Jesse Braun Electric, electrical contract, $419,900. The contracts include four items bid as optional, depending on price. They provide for floor heat, northside skylights, westside bay windows and sleeping room lighting control.

The City of Minot pursued the fifth station to improve response time. The fire department strives to meet a standard that calls for a response time of just around five minutes 90% of the time. The new station will provide quicker response and provide an additional crew in event of a large emergency.

Work on the fire station is to begin this construction season.

Also during Tuesday’s council meeting, Hess Corp. presented a $41,534 grant to Minot Fire Department to purchase a new air compressor. The compressor is used to fill self-contained breathing apparatus for responses involving fires, hazardous materials, confined space and other incidents in which the quality of air is compromised.