Village One Step Closer to New Fire Hall Reaches Agreement with Critics

Mayor Rick Milne, Critics owners Gus and Nick Kokkinis and Fire Chief Dave Hood stand on what could be the site of a new fire hall for the Honeoye Falls Fire Department. Photo by Gina Hurley

The Village of Honeoye Falls and the owners of Critics Family Restaurant are working together on a plan that will allow for the update and expansion of the Honeoye Falls Fire Department. In June 2020, the Village of Honeoye Falls established a Fire Station Building Committee, composed of a variety of local residents and stakeholders, and charged with the task of assessing the facility and the community needs. The current firehouse, located at 7 Monroe Street, has been the home to HFFD for 76 years. It was originally built in 1944 with a partial renovation in 1975.

The committee’s first objective was to assess the fire department’s existing facility, current operations and future needs in order to make an informed recommendation to the Village Board on the necessity for a new fire station. Last October, after months of investigation, research and due diligence, the committee unanimously recommended that the Village of Honeoye Falls move forward with a plan to provide an updated facility for the Honeoye Falls Fire Department that meets current fire service standards and the growing needs of our community.
Once needs and standards were assessed, the committee addressed the ability of the current location to meet those requirements.

“The current location of the firehouse is beneficial on a variety of fronts’’ says HFFD Fire Chief David Hood. “Its location is easily accessible for many of the volunteers who respond to the station when there is a call. Plus, it has been a pillar of the Village center for decades.” The committee’s recommendation on equipment, safety and personnel means looking at expanding the facility space. As Chief Hood notes, “the existing footprint is limited and the firehouse is landlocked by other properties on three sides.”

Recently, the Village sat down with Gus and Nick Kokkinis, owners and operators of Critics Family Restaurant. “Our objective was to see if there were any synergies around their future business plans and our property needs for a future firehouse project,” said Honeoye Falls Mayor Rick Milne. “Come to find out, there was some perfect timing alignment around their interest in sunsetting the business and our firehouse project goals.”

With that, the Village of Honeoye Falls and the Kokkinis’ have come to a mutually beneficial agreement that sets a course for the Village to purchase the Critics property in the future. “It has been our pleasure to serve the community for the past 38 years” said Gus and Nick Kokkinis. Nothing is changing at Critics in the short-term. However, this arrangement will allow the Fire Station Building Committee to start researching design options and funding mechanisms. “We look forward to having some detailed community engagement later this year about our need and vision for a firehouse that will serve this community for decades to come,“ said Hood.

Be sure to read the Sentinel‘s story on the timeline of the new Honeoye Falls Fire Hall.