The DeKalb County Commission voted to move forward with a proposed new fire hall in the Liberty/Dowelltown area to replace the cramped quarters currently used by Liberty Engine 65. Fire officials say the new building is needed and provide faster service to the western part of the county, but some county commissioners had reservations.

The current building used by the DeKalb County Fire Department’s Liberty Station was fine when it was built back in the 1970s, but by current standards it is woefully inadequate. The Liberty Station has the second highest call volume in the department, but the current building barely accommodates the department’s fire engine.

The bumpers of the engine nearly touch the wall and bay door, and the vehicle’s tanks have to be filled with water in order to be weighted down enough to clear the top of the bay door. The truck clears the top of the doorway by less than an inch. With such a big truck and such a tiny space, department officials say it’s only a matter of time before there is some kind of accident.

The proposed new fire hall, would solve the department’s issues. It would be located between Liberty and Dowelltown at what is currently an old park owned jointly by the cities. Liberty and Dowelltown have both agreed to lease the eight-acre property to the department for $1 for 99 years.

The design of the building would also add some more protection to the community. With three bays, the building would not only house Engine 65, but also one of the department’s tanker trucks. Tankers are used to ferry water to fire scenes where no hydrant is available, which is a larger portion of western DeKalb. With a tanker stationed at the fire hall, response times would be cut in half to fire calls in Alexandria, Liberty, Dowelltown and Temperance Hall.

The new facility would also have an added benefit. With three bays, the fire hall could house one of the DeKalb EMS day trucks, cutting EMS calls in half to that portion of the county.

“We started out wanting to request a new station because we got the new fire engine in Liberty under a rural development grant,” DeKalb Fire Chief Donny Green told the Smithville Review. “It fits in the station now, but it’s very tight. We also have some major problems with the asphalt in front of the old building. It’s sinking. We were looking at doing some repairs, but when this American Rescue Plan money came about, we thought it would make more sense, rather than spending a lot of money on a 47 year old station that’s going to need $5-6,000 worth of asphalt work, it might be more practical to find another site and build a two-bay station that would house the fire truck and a new tanker we are getting through a CBDG grant.”

During the regular monthly County Commission meeting on May 23, the commission voted 9 to 4 to allocate $350,000 of American Rescue Plan Act Grant funds toward the project. But some commissioners were not on board.

Commissioners voting against the fire hall were Julie Young, Shaee Flatt, Jenny Trapp, and Bruce Malone, while Commissioners voting in favor were Myron Rhody, Sabrina Farler, Susannah Cripps Daughtry, Janice Fish Stewart, Jerry Adcock, Anita Puckett, Jeff Barnes, Matt Adcock, and Beth Pafford. Dr. Scott Little was absent.

First District Commissioner Julie Young voted against the project saying her fellow commissioners were breaking with precedent in how they fund new fire halls. Young said that the Wolf Creek Community in her district has been wanting a fire hall there for some time and had an issue with placing a new fire hall in Liberty before addressing the Wolf Creek extension.

“I have been fighting for a fire hall in the Wolf Creek/Edgar Evins area for many years and we have been putting back money for a fire hall over there. We did look at putting a fire hall on Corps property and we followed it all the way up to the federal government, but the federal government said no, that’s a no go. As for not having personnel over there, we have not done a big recruiting event there. I just feel like that we are not going to get our constituents covered and get them the breaks they need on their homeowner’s insurance by spending this amount of money on one station when there is a station there already providing service,” said Commissioner Young.

But fire officials have explained in previous meetings that the Wolf Creek fire hall is not off the board, but that the bigger need is the current Liberty Station. Officials say that the Liberty engine is already equipped, has vehicles, has property to build a building and has personnel to man the station, while Wolf Creek has none of that.

The main issue with Wolf Creek is there is currently no location for the proposed station. The fire hall would need a truck, personal gear, a building, and volunteers to man it, while all Liberty needs for faster response for both fire and medical emergencies is a building. Liberty would also be the main engine to respond to fire calls in the 1st District.

Fire officials say they haven’t forgotten the Wolf Creek station, but that there are many more obstacles to overcome. That being said, the county and the fire department have already set aside $75,000 in funds, including funds raised during a fire department vehicle auction, towards the construction of the Wolf Creek site. The same process was used during the implementation of the Four Seasons Fire Hall that was constructed in 2019.

With the commission approving moving forward with the new Liberty/Dowelltown Fire Hall, the county is waiting on building estimates for both a two and three-bay station. Afterwards, the county would have to accept bids for the construction of the building.