Fire Station #171 Replacement

UPDATE: The new fire station is now open! City Council and Avondale Fire and Medical cut the ribbon and rang the bell on the new building on November 3. An open house is scheduled for members of the public to tour the facility on Saturday, November 22, 2025.

The contractor has started demolition of the old fire house on 5th Street. Once complete, the area where the old building currently sits will be converted to a stormwater retention basin.

Avondale Fire Station #171 was originally constructed in 1985 and went through a major remodel and renovations in 2006. With much of the same infrastructure from the original building, Fire Station #171 in its current form, has reached its useful lifespan. This facility is requiring major and significant renovations to improve and bring the building up to current standards and conditions. In addition, the current fire station configuration facing 5th street is not conducive to rapid access other than to the south since the construction of the Sam Garcia library several years ago cut off the 5th street connection to Western Avenue.

The new facility will include four apparatus bays that will exit directly onto 6th Street, 10 dorm rooms, and the latest in firefighter health and safety design. Construction is scheduled to begin in November 2024 and will occur over three phases:

1. Demolition of the existing police substation and detention center at the southwest corner of 6th Street and Western Avenue;

2. Construction of the new facility with a lobby exiting onto Western Ave;

3. Demolition of the existing facility and completion of the secured parking yard and on-site stormwater retention.

During construction, calls for service from the fire station will not be impacted. The only change to operations will be that the crews will have to 'back-in' the equipment when returning.

The project budget for Fire Station #171 Replacement is $15,839,000 and is expected to be completed in February 2026.