Construction is under way on Carrollton’s newest fire station, located at the corner of Lovvorn and Brumbelow Roads.
“Everything is pretty well in on the foundation, and right now the contractor is waiting on a few items before they can move forward,” said Carrollton City Engineer Tommy Holland.
Holland noted that workers discovered poor soil conditions while digging at the site.
“When we started digging, we discovered that the soil conditions were not the quality they needed to be for a fire station, so we had to remove the existing dirt, and haul better dirt back into the site,” said Holland. “The soil had lots of roots and debris. For a normal structure that wouldn’t be a problem, but we wanted to make sure the soil was as good quality as it could be. One of the main reasons for this is that we will be pulling fire trucks in and out everyday, and when you factor in the weight of those trucks on that soil, you really need to have a solid foundation underneath.”
The new station will replace the city’s old firehouse on Brumbelow Road, which was destroyed by a tornado on April 3.
City Council member Gerald Byrd stated in a meeting earlier this year that he would like to see interactive features for the fire station that could benefit local residents.
“Since that particular fire station received a large amount of international attention, I think we need to capitalize on this opportunity to make this a citizen-focused fire station that we can use to educate our community,” said Byrd. “We can have things like touch-screen technology, and other educational tools for people to use and learn more about fire safety and also how to be weather prepared in case of an emergency.”
Carrollton City Fire Chief Jimmy Bearden expressed his approval of the idea, noting that the new fire station could serve as a hub for education of residents, “I think it’s a great idea. We put as much emphasis on fire prevention as we do on fighting fires. It’s a good opportunity for us to help teach people how to be prepared for severe weather and fires.”
City Manager Tim Grizzard said the new fire station is set to be built on a 0.87-acre lot. The lot is currently owned by the UWG Foundation, and was appraised at $190,000. The Foundation agreed to sell the land to the City of Carrollton for $100,000.
“It’s a more suitable location because it’s on level ground,” said Bearden. “The other station was built on a hill, and we had problems with the trucks sliding when we had ice on the ground. The new station is also located on a corner, so we have a four-street access point, which really helps us in responding to calls. We’re extremely proud to get started on this.”
Holland said that construction crews have the footings installed for the new station and will soon be ready to pour the slab foundation. “Once we get the slab poured, the actual building will start going up pretty quickly,” said Holland.
