Hazardous Materials Training Center Project

Help expand and modernize Michigan's HazMat Training Center!

Background

The Michigan State Police (MSP) Emergency Management and Homeland Security Training Center (EMHSTC) was originally built in 1991 as the HazMat Training Center. Due to a recognized need for training of first responders and private industry in safe response to hazardous material release incidents, a partnership was formed. The Michigan Chemistry Council partnered with its members and many other industry groups to construct a facility on state-owned land with donations of time, money, and materials.

 After more than 30 years, the EMHSTC continues to flourish with the support of public and private stakeholders. The facility is utilized about 150 days per year with 50-60 classes onsite, and has trained more than 50,000 students since its inception. The center is sustained primarily through grants and training fees, with courses provided to first responders at little or no cost and to private industry at a competitive cost.

Purpose for the Expansion

• The EMHSTC has just one classroom with a maximum capacity of 30 students and no breakout options. There is an inefficient residential HVAC system that cannot adequately keep the building comfortable in summer.
• Staff are forced to utilize grant funding for off-site classrooms or turn away training courses due to lack of space.
• While some classes are held around the state for the convenience of students, the bedrock of hazardous material courses should be located at the EMHSTC to provide easy access to training equipment and props.
• EMHSTC employees have been working in a temporary modular building for more than 20 years. The modular is unsafe at times, is not compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requirements, and requires continuous maintenance and monthly rent.
• Because the restroom facility is inadequate for the demands of large training events, portable toilets are regularly rented.
• There is no formal security and staff offices are not designed to view who enters the building.
• The EMHSTC was built with donated funds and began to outgrow the facility within eight years of inception.

What the Expansion Provides

The proposal would renovate and expand the facility to create a sufficient size and design for optimal workflow. The EMHSTC seeks to evolve the comprehensive programs it provides and best utilize staff and equipment to train first responders, state agencies, and private industry.

One additional classroom will seat up to 50 with conference and breakout rooms, offering the ability to hold higher-quality training and additional valuable courses. The expansion would also co-locate staff offices together in a permanent building and add upgraded restrooms and a secure entrance.

Expansion Cost

A plan to remodel the existing 1,100 square feet and add 5,500 square feet is projected at a total cost of $2.1 million.

Funding the Expansion

A one-time investment will help address a number of critical deficiencies at the EMHSTC and allow it to continue to meet our state’s needs for specialized training in emergency and hazardous materials response.

This project will ensure that local first responders are able to afford and access this crucial training and that Michigan industry can utilize an in-state facility instead of having to send their employees a great distance elsewhere.

For More Information or How to Support

The Michigan Chemistry Council is partnering closely with the MSP to help make this project a reality.

For more information about the project, to lend your voice to support a state investment, or to make a contribution, please contact MCC Executive Director Jami Des Chenes at 517-487-8557 or [email protected]