Manatee County celebrates 10 years of its public safety center

When Sully Molnar gets older, he wants to follow in his father’s footsteps as a paramedic. But on Wednesday, the 4-year-old was most interested in the “Fire Safety House” bounce house.

“I bounce, bounce, bounce,” Sully said at Manatee County Department of Public Safety’s Safety Fest.

Wednesday’s Safety Fest, which was held to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the county’s Public Safety Center, featured each of the department’s six divisions: Animal Services, Emergency Communications Center, Emergency Management, Emergency Medical Service, Marine Rescue and Community Paramedic.

For Zach Molnar, a Manatee County paramedic and Sully’s father, the event showcased the importance of public safety.

“He knows I’m here to help people,” he said of Sully. “I think that’s a good message for those in the community to hear.”

All the different public safety vehicles were on display outside the Public Safety Center, 2101 47th Terrace E., where there were also dogs available for adoption, a kids zone and tours given of the Emergency Operations Center.

“We wanted to find a way that all divisions could come together and do one event,” said Bob Smith, the county’s public safety director. “We want citizens to know what we offer, what we provide.”

While the Public Safety Center will officially be open 10 years this July, the county wanted to avoid hurricane season.

Deputy County Administrator Karen Windon, who was public safety director when the construction first started on the center, remembers when the operation was located on the fifth floor of the glass County Administration Building in downtown Bradenton.

“It is just so hard to believe it’s been that long,” she said. “Just knowing that this is a secure facility if we need it is more than anyone can ask for.”

Myakka City resident Jenny Wingate wanted to bring her son, 6-year-old Larry Morris, to Wednesday’s event to “let him experience the cops and things like that.”

“One day he was saying something about cops being bad,” Wingate said. “Kind of let him know they are good and everything.”

Many Manatee County residents don’t realize how much the public safety department does between the six divisions, said Hans Wohlgefahrt, who was one of the event co-planners.

“They see vehicles every day on the street but rarely get a chance to see up close,” the Animal Services outreach and events specialist said. “It’s a great time to bring everyone together, get information out and community building.”

This story was originally published May 3, 2017 at 7:07 PM with the headline "Manatee County celebrates 10 years of its public safety center."