At Long Last, Greenwich Emergency Services Unveils New Station 4

GREENWICH, CT — On Wednesday after years in the making, Greenwich Emergency Medical Services (GEMS) finally unveiled its new Station 4 building in the northwest corner of town on King Street

Members of the community gathered at the new 3,000-square-foot facility right next to the Griffith E. Harris Golf Course for a ribbon-cutting ceremony and open house.

"GEMS's mission is to provide high quality, pre-hospital care to every resident in the town of Greenwich," said GEMS Board Chair Rod Saggesse. "This great new facility we have here today will help us do exactly that."

The new station, located at 1327 King St., replaces a trailer that GEMS has used since 2013. The trailer was put in service after the previous building was damaged by Superstorm Sandy in 2012.

Station 4 was first established in 2002 to increase response time in that area of town. In 2004, the town purchased and approved the site for use.

"It's exciting to be here finally. I never thought the day would come," said Andy Fox, chair of GEMS's Facilities Committee, who helped spearhead the project.

GEMS Executive Director Tracy Schietinger highlighted the importance of the facility. Of the organization's roughly 6,000 calls for service per year, about 1,300 come from the northwest section of Greenwich.

"Of those 1,300 calls we do up here, this is obviously where they're going to come from. [We're] going to protect everyone up here and everyone in town," she said.

Schietinger noted that the biggest feature of the new building is the ability to house vehicles in a temperature-controlled garage. In the past, ambulances were left outside overnight, which exposed them to the elements. The vehicles also need to be kept at a certain temperature for the safekeeping of medications.

By having a proper garage, the lifespan of EMS vehicles can be extended by about three years, something Fox called a "big financial win to the town and the GEMS organization."

Two people will be staffed at Station 4 — one paramedic and one Emergency Medical Technician, although the building can house up to six people. The first crews wil be moving in to the building in the coming days, Schietinger said.

Schietinger said the extra capacity will come in handy when dealing with severe storm events.

"We can house people to not have to be driving in inclement weather, and we can be prepared at all times," she said.

GEMS is a not-for-profit organization and operates independently in Greenwich. It's the sole provider of emergency services in town.

The building cost just over $1 million, and GEMS contributed $200,000 through fundraising for the project. The public/private partnership with the town covered architecture and engineering work.

Over the past year, GEMS has operated out of nearby Brunswick School while construction took place.

First Selectman Fred Camillo spoke briefly on Wednesday and thanked all those involved for helping to make the much-needed facility come to fruition after all these years.

"This is the culmination of a seven-year endeavor. This really completes the four areas of Greenwich for the services of GEMS," Camillo said. "I always tell people that you never want to wish a medical episode on anybody, but if you do find yourself in one of those medical emergencies, you want to hope you're in Greenwich, and that's in large part to GEMS."