The Gainesville City Commission unanimously entered a maximum price agreement for sitework construction to begin at two local stations — three and nine — at its Thursday meeting. The deals, made with Ajax Building Company, LLC, will cost the city about $2 million and $4 million respectively.
“I am very pleased that the city of Gainesville is doing right by our firefighters,” said Mayor Harvey Ward. “This is long-awaited, and we should celebrate this.”
The projects will be funded by the Streets, Stations & Strong Foundations Surtax Program, a half-cent tax servicing infrastructure development in Gainesville, including roads and affordable housing projects.
Construction for fire station three is said to begin in May, per a city press release. The station will be relocated from 900 NE Waldo Road to Northeast Eighth Avenue, between Northeast 13th and 14th Streets, and it will be upgraded from 5,700 square feet to 17,000.
Station nine, currently operated out of a temporary modular building on Southwest 30th Avenue, will be moved to the Southwest Public Safety Center, a new facility to be placed near the intersection of Archer Road and Interstate 75. According to the press release, its new station will have a separate area for public works and a community center, aiming to serve southwest Gainesville.
The construction proposals come as demand for Gainesville Fire Rescue services increase, said the press release, and the new stations are meant to improve response times and aid outcomes.
“It’s the right priority for core services,” said Commissioner Ed Book on Thursday.
The Thursday-made price agreement marks only the early release package for the fire stations, permitting demolition and sitework to begin. Public works will return to the city commission June 18 and Aug. 6 for approval of the final agreements, said Gainesville facilities manager Gary Cothren at the meeting.
Contact Maria Arruda at marruda@alligator.org. Follow her on X at @mariazalfarruda.
Maria Arruda is a second-year journalism and political science student, currently working as the City Commission reporter for The Alligator. Previously, she reported on Student Government under The Alligator's University desk. She enjoys running, reading and going to movie theaters!
