- Fire Station 17 should to enhance public safety and reduce response times within National Fire Protection standards.
- It's in an under-served area that experiences 5,000 fire calls a year.
- Watch the video above to hear from neighbors in Southwest Tallahassee, and local leaders about the plan.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT
A new fire station coming to SW Tallahassee is step closer to coming true.
I'm Terry Gilliam your Southwest Tallahassee neighborhood reporter.
I'm finding out about this new fire station, and what's next.
"It was blazing everywhere; it was so big. It was blazing so high, it was heat coming from the building, I'm glad no kids were in there."
Ronald Mills is a Southwest Tallahassee neighbor. I had him explain the scene of a fire he saw one time in his area.
"A fire can go fast and it's the summertime now…"
Now there's something coming to the neighborhood when those fires occur. It's called Fire Station 17.
Wednesday, city leaders voted in favor of funding up to $27 million for the project.
That money would come from the City of Tallahassee, Florida Improvement Revenue Note.
It's a project that been in development for years.
"It will be a faster response!"
A fast response is the idea.
The new development is designed to enhance public safety and reduce response times within National Fire Protection standards in an under-served area that experiences 5,000 calls a year.
I asked city commissioner and strong advocate of the new station, Curtis Richardson, if the new fire station were in the Southwest Tallahassee neighborhood would benefit people living here.
"We hear the sirens all the time along Orange Avenue; Lake Bradford road. We just pray that the best happens out of that. But with this facility in our neighborhood near where we live. The chances of a positive outcome would be so much better."
The new fire station is planned to be located at the former site of the city-owned wastewater treatment facility on 1815 Lake Bradford Rd.
Leaving neighbors like Mills confident in enhancing his community.
"I think it's a good time, they know what they're doing!"
The City of Tallahassee tells me that the director of construction for this development confirmed a start date of early 2025. The completion should be around the middle of 2026. In Southwest Tallahassee, Terry Gilliam, ABC27.
