The Mt. Juliet fire chief explained that the new station would improve living conditions for the firefighters that will live and work at the station as well as provide better coverage for residents.
MT. JULIET, Tenn. (WKRN) — There’s excitement for Mt. Juliet’s newest fire station.
A groundbreaking ceremony was held on Friday afternoon at the location near the intersection of Old Lebanon Dirt Road and North Mount Juliet Road.
“It’s replacing our old station number three, which is on Hill Street directly behind our city hall. [It] was built, we believe, in the late ’50s,” Mt. Juliet Fire Chief Mark Foulks said. “It’s literally a metal building that they’re living out of and have been living out of for years, so this is going to be a significant upgrade for us.”
According to Foulks, the fire station will cost more than $8 million. After a location study, the department believed this location would cover all of their buildings in the city. The new fire station is expected to be completed in December 2025.
Foulks is already looking toward the future as he explained that two more fire departments are expected to be built within the next eight years.
“[It will provide] the maximum amount of coverage for all of our buildings and the residents here in Mt. Juliet as well as centralizing some of our resources here,” Foulks told News 2.
All of the medical gear, engines and other equipment will be transferred from the old station three to the new one. Another important aspect of the station was improving living conditions for the firefighters that are moving into the building.
“There’s going to be around 14 to 15 people staffed here pretty much 24/7 because of the resources that we’re combining here to the center of the city,” Foulks added.
Foulks said that he believes Mt. Juliet’s continued growth will spur the construction of more fire stations to meet demand.