Lake County emergency workers training center opens

After years of planning, the first phase of a regional training center for emergency workers opened Saturday in Lake County.

The four-story "Osmond Tower" multi-function facility for firefighter training was dedicated during a brief ceremony before a crowd of about 100 people.

Located on 80 acres of county-owned land that was leased to the Great Lakes Regional Disaster Training Board in 2008, the building represents close to six years of work for the coalition of public and private entities.

Howard Simpson, the Lake Forest businessman who is the driving force behind the project, said the goal of the Lake County Advanced Regional Training Academy is to raise preparedness levels of local first responders while saving taxpayers money.

Simpson said the tower, named for the late State Rep. Tim Osmond, will allow firefighters to practice up to 123 different rescue scenarios under realistic conditions.

"The entire structure can be filled with smoke," Simpson said. "The fire departments can do all their required training for certifications and other purposes right in their own back yard."

Currently, Lake County firefighters, paramedics and police officers have to travel out of the county to do much of their training.

Simpson said that as the Lake County center expands, local governments will save the cost of sending personnel out of town for training, and the county stands to make money as out-of-town departments come here to train.

Simpson envisions a $30 million to $40 million complex developing over the next 20 years that will provide training for a wide selection of first responders.

The Osmond Tower was financed through $500,000 in state grants secured by Osmond, his wife and successor in office State Rep. JoAnn Osmond, and State Sen. Michael Bond.

In addition, Simpson said private and corporate donations helped pay for the Osmond Tower. Many of those donors have committed to future projects as well.

Those projects include facilities for police training and a driving course.

Michael Blazincic, chief of administration for the Lake County sheriff's office, said the tower also has police training applications.

The tower looks over the sheriff's shooting range, which also hosts training for departments outside Lake County, and Blazincic said sharpshooters will be able to practice from the platform at the top of the tower.

Bond told the crowd he has secured a $190,000 grant to build a hanger for the police helicopters operated by the Winthrop Harbor Police Department and hopes that it can be constructed at the center.

He said apparent terror plots against targets in New York City and Springfield uncovered by police last week underscore the need for quality training for first responders.

"Those actions are a sobering reminder that we must remain vigilant," Bond said. "It is imperative that we have people trained for the potential threats we face."