The Gilroy City Council on Monday approved another location for a temporary fire station on the west side of the city.
A modular fire station will now be constructed on the ranch side of Christmas Hill Park, with Fire Chief Jim Wyatt estimating it will open in October.
The building was originally planned on an empty lot on 10th Street and DeAnza Place in the Glen Loma Ranch development, after the council’s July 2022 approval of $344,000 in funding.
But Wyatt said the site has no utilities available, and delays from Pacific Gas & Electric to hook up electricity to the building pushed the estimated opening date to summer 2024, more than a year from what was originally expected.
The new site is adjacent to a building in Christmas Hill Park that has been staffed with firefighters for 12 hours a day since mid-2019. That building is not suitable for a 24-hour operation, Wyatt said, as it does not have a kitchen, showers or garage.
The modular double wide trailer, once constructed, will include sleeping quarters, an office, shower and kitchen, allowing for 24-hour staffing. Utilities are already on site, Wyatt added, and the recent removal of the speed bumps in the Christmas Hill Park parking lot helps quicken response times.
It remains unknown when a permanent fire station will be constructed in Glen Loma Ranch. According to the 2005 development agreement, the station must be completed before Glen Loma Development Group applies for a permit for its 1,100th residential unit. The developer would pay for a majority of the construction costs.
