SALISBURY— Last Tuesday, the Salisbury City Council agreed to hear out bids from contractors for the new fire station that will be built on 150 Mahaley Avenue. This will replace fire station 3 that is currently located at 1604 West Innes Street.

Problems with the current station started to manifest over a decade ago. The building was constructed in 1957 and was not built on a solid foundation as the soils cannot support the weight of the station.

“It was not built for modern day fire service. In other words, we have female firefighters, there was no facility built for separate gender units. There was no ADA requirements there, so access for limited mobile people was not considered back then. Most importantly, safety and health of the firefighters was not considered much,” Salisbury Fire Chief Bob Parnell said.

The fire department and city management worked together in coming up with the best course of action to proceed. Once they figured out the best solution, the city reached out to First Tryon Advisors, a financial advisory firm, to come up with the most efficient way to fund the $10 million project. How that will be done is contingent on council approving the bid for construction first.

Currently, the fire station’s plans are being reviewed for approval from the appropriate agencies. Once approved, the plans will be sent out to contractors so that they will be able to submit fair bids. Bids will be received by late April. If council gives final approval on a bid and how to finance the station, then construction will begin around the end of summer and last 12-15 months.