3 of 4 new Davis fire stations under way

The South Davis Metro Fire Agency broke ground Wednesday on what will be the third of four new fire stations in Davis County by early 2009.

The new Station 82, which will cost nearly $2.2 million, will be located on Eagleridge Drive in North Salt Lake and will replace the current Station 82, which adjoins the North Salt Lake City Hall.

Fire stations are already under way in Clinton and West Point, and the Syracuse Fire Department hopes to break ground on a new station in January.

Officials say the new fire stations are needed to serve residents in rapidly growing western Davis County and to give firefighters better response times to emergencies.

The North Davis Fire District, which serves Clearfield and West Point, broke ground in June on the district's second fire station, which will be located in West Point at 380 N. 3150 West.

The district's first station, near Clearfield's City Hall, is too far away from new homes being built in West Point, says Fire Chief Roger Bodily.

Response times to the outer reaches of West Point can be nine to 10 minutes.

"This will cut response times to the four- to five-minute range," he said.

Once the $3 million (including furnishings) 16,000-square-foot building is complete in February, it will have room to house six firefighters 24 hours a day, though three firefighters will be there full time initially, Bodily said.

The district, which formed in 2004, has maintained its property tax rate and plans to do so for the next seven years to make sure it has enough revenue to hire more firefighters and pay for the building.

Eventually, Bodily said, a new station will have to be built on the southern end of Clearfield.

In Syracuse, Fire Chief Craig Cottrell said his department will need take up new digs about a mile west of its current location for two reasons: The city's police department will take over the city's public safety building and City Hall once a new City Hall is completed in early 2008. The new location, which will likely be on 3000 West and Antelope Drive, is also the geographical center of the city, Cottrell said.

If the fire station is comparable to the one in West Point, it could cost between $2.5 million and $3.2 million to build.

But the building's size depends on the Syracuse City Council in its role as Municipal Building Authority.