MOUNT MORRIS, N.Y., April 17, 2025 — American City & County has named the Livingston County Office of Emergency Management’s Fire Training Tower as a 2024 recipient of its annual Crown Communities Award. The award recognizes city or county projects that have had a positive impact on their local community as a whole.
The Livingston County project is one of only six nationwide to receive the award. Since its completion in August of 2024, the four-story facility has served as a valuable multi-purpose training tool for firefighters, local law enforcement, and emergency response teams throughout the region, including those from Monroe, Steuben and Genesee counties.
Located at the Hampton Corners County Complex in Mount Morris, the training tower represents a considerable step forward in emergency response training for the County’s first responders. With burn rooms on three floors, the structure allows firefighters to hone their skills in a number of different fire scenarios, including basement fires, second-story blazes, and several other types of firefighting situations.
“The Fire Training Tower has really transformed how we train our community’s first responders,” said Office of Emergency Management Director Will Gall. “With the wide variety of scenarios it’s capable of reproducing, our response teams are more prepared than ever before to expertly respond to the many different situations they encounter every day. Approximately 40 state certificates have been earned through the tower in less than seven months in service. The Livingston County Sheriff’s Office is also currently using the facility for their SWAT Academy, with several deputies and officers scheduled to graduate tomorrow.”
Beyond its primary firefighting functions, the tower also features 22 rope rescue anchors for specialized training in rope rescue techniques, like high-angle rescues, confined space rescues, and other challenging scenarios emergency responders may have to navigate. All local fire departments and law enforcement partners have access to the tower for training and certification, furthering their ability to protect lives and property in Livingston County.
The editors of American City & County stated, “In selecting a Crown Communities honoree, we look at how projects affect and benefit the community as a whole. The Fire Training Tower in Livingston County stood out to us because having firefighters trained to fight a variety of fires in different scenarios means the community can be confident that if a fire situation arises, the professionals coming to their aid are fully prepared for any scenario.”
The age of the County’s previous burn tower, combined with its limited training capabilities, prompted department leaders to seek the replacement facility. The $650,000 Fire Training Tower was paid for with funding from the American Rescue Plan Act, a federal investment in local governments designed to help communities recover from the pandemic and build more resilient economies.
Read more about the Crown Communities Award on the American City & County website.
Stay up-to-date with the latest news, events and more by following Livingston County on X, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn.
About Livingston County:
Founded in 1821, Livingston County, N.Y., is home to more than 61,000 residents in 17 towns located across 631 square miles of the Finger Lakes region.