Residents of Championsgate and Reunion will now be privy to a shiny, new fire station that was opened earlier today, dubbed Station 73. Costing $5.6 million the new station is slated to improve public safety for residents and visitors on the west side of Osceola County.
Station 73 is a 4-bay station that replaces a more “temporary” facility nearby. It is the third to be built with a cost-saving design that was first implemented in 2016. And the replacement, unlike its predecessor, is a state of the art, 12,456-square-foot facility, designed to withstand severe weather events with up to 150 mph wind speeds. In addition, stormwater from the station goes to an existing pond on its adjacent property. The new station serves a large portion of the tourist area around ChampionsGate and Reunion, as well as Interstate 4 west of Disney World.
Peggy Choudhry, County Commissioner for District 1 where the new station is located was present for the unveiling and expressed gratitude to the various partners who helped in bringing the station to reality – in particular Jim Bagley of Citicommunities LLC – who provided basic site work and free fill dirt for the project, as well as for providing a free temporary station location during construction so firefighters could continue serving the community.
“We continue to focus on improvements to public safety for our community,” Choudhry said. “This station is a significant upgrade to the modular units that the firefighters at Station 73 have had to live in. Investments like this insure that our first-responders are housed safely during severe weather events and that means that our citizens will be served more quickly and efficiently.”
Arnco Construction began work on Station 73, located along Osceola Polk Line Road, in December of 2017. The design by the firm CT Hsu & Associates features concrete tilt wall construction and a community room that can be used for small group meetings.
“Better quarters mean that our firefighters will have a better quality of life, and that translates directly into the ability to better serve our community,” said Osceola Fire Chief Robert Sorenson. “This is a modern design that features amenities that weren’t included in stations designed just a few years ago. This forward thinking will allow us to accommodate for growth in the future in this thriving area of Osceola.”
