Alachua County hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony May 30 to officially open Fire Station 21 near Santa Fe High School and Interstate 75 in Alachua.
It will replace the former station on the corner of U.S. 441 and Northwest 140th Street. The project broke ground in March 2024.
Alachua County Fire Rescue Chief Harold Theus said Fire Station 21 helps create an overlap of coverage where the predominant population of the city of Alachua resides.
Theus said the department wanted a property that could access I-75 and stay within a few miles of downtown Alachua. The property accomplishes both, being located only 2.3 miles from Alachua City Hall.
“A lot has gone into this location, and a lot has gone into this property,” Theus said. “We’re so very excited to be here, and we’re very excited about serving the community in this area for the next 50 years as this station is here.”
Alachua County bought Fire Station 21’s property in 2020. It purchased the site for $45,000, when similar acreage approached $1 million, Theus said.
The one-story, 11,500 square feet structure had a $7 million budget. It includes a new water tanker, an advanced life support ambulance and an E-One Typhoon fire truck that was delivered a few weeks ago.
The station will have five staff on duty 24/7 and house Battalion 7. Each battalion manages a different geographical area of Alachua County. Battalion 7 is responsible for the northwest corner of the county.
The Lunz Group, an architecture firm located in Lakeland, led the project’s engineering and architecture, while the D.E. Scorpio Corporation handled construction. Lunz Group is involved with future new fire stations in the county, Lunz Group architect Stacy Witschen said.
The station was designed to accommodate growth, like the new Wawa and a subdivision of hundreds of new homes. Due to the area’s fast development, the new location will reduce response times.
“Time is really key, and being quickly accessible to any of those locations is pretty critical,” Witschen said.
Alachua Assistant City Manager Rodolfo Valladares spoke at the ceremony Friday, filling in for City Manager Mike DaRoza, who resigned on May 26.
“Our firefighters are everyday heroes,” Valladares said. “Today, we’re proud to provide them with a state-of-the-art facility.”
Cesar Martinez, a 30-year-old High Springs resident, said new fire stations in the area are much needed due to the increase in medical centers, restaurants and homes.
“I came in here about five, six years ago, and it’s nothing compared to how it is right now,” Martinez said.
Fire Station 21 is one of multiple new fire stations to be completed in recent years in Alachua County. In 2020, Fire Station 25 opened in Tech City, a sustainable community and business hub located in the county. The station currently serves the county’s eastern side and opened in 2020. Gainesville’s Fire Station 80 opened in March 2024 and covers the south side of Gainesville.
Later this year, Alachua County will continue to modernize its firefighting infrastructure with the construction of another station at San Felasco Tech City.
Contact Logan McBride at lmcbride@alligator.org. Follow him on X @LoganDMcBride.
Logan McBride is a journalism junior and the Summer 2025 city commission reporter. In his free time, he enjoys watching TV shows or playing basketball at Southwest Rec. He is also a big football fan and will die for Dak Prescott.
