FARGO (KFGO) – Work is set to begin on a new fire station in south Fargo.
Mayor Tim Mahoney, Fire Liaison Commissioner Denise Kolpack, and others joined Chief Steve Dirksen for a ceremony at the site of the new station, which will be on 3.5 acres at 6617 33rd Street S.
Fire Station 8 will serve the area south of Rose Creek Coulee between the Red River and 42nd Street.
Dirksen said there have been nearly 1,900 calls for service in that area in the past five years. The response time for those calls is 10 minutes and 46 seconds, 90 percent of the time.
“That’s not acceptable by our standards,” Dirksen said. “Our goal is to respond to every emergency in every planning zone in six minutes and 20 seconds or less 90 percent of the time. This station and this investment is going to help us reach that goal.”
Mahoney said public safety is at the core of the City’s responsibility to its citizens, and the new station will not only help with response and safety, but it will also help grow the city.
“Investing in infrastructure can and does stimulate economic growth and development by creating jobs, improving property values in the surrounding area, and increasing development in the south side of Fargo,” Mahoney said. “This will truly help us grow our community.”
Dirksen said completion is subject to construction supply issues and the weather, but the hope is to open the station in the second quarter of 2024.
A $8.1 million bond will help pay for the project and was approved by the City Commission last year.
The area is currently served by Station 2, located at 30th Avenue and 25th Street South. Dirksen said from there to Davies High School is four miles with an eight-minute drive time. Station 8 will be a mile and a half from Davies with a three- to four-minute drive time.
