Government
BY RYAN REYNOLDS
Fire department’s 8 stations could face yearlong delay
simultaneously, to accommodate population growth and decrease emergency response time. The recommendation to add eight new re stations and more sta over the next few years came in late 2023 from Citygate Associates, a California-based consulting rm. The initial timeline had stations 14 and 15 being built as soon as 2025, according to prior Commu- nity Impact reporting. At the time, CFFD already owned land for stations 14, 16 and 21. The CFFD estimated that building and stang eight new stations would cost approximately $138.24 million, which would come from ESD No. 9’s reserves. In 2023, CFFD Chief of Operations Brent Scalise said ocials had been setting aside funds for years in preparation for this expansion. Sorting out the details Gordon said the re department should priori- tize building stations 15 and 17 rst. “[They] are the highest priority to provide call volume relief to stations on the west side of ESD 9 and keep response times faster than industry standards,” Gordon said. Chevron donated the land for Station 17 in Bridgeland, and ocials said they hoped to break ground in 2025. During a Jan. 23 meeting, Scalise said accomplishing that timeline would be dicult if the board is looking for new architects. ESD ocials said they have identied land for Station 15 near FM 529 and the Grand Parkway, and they hope to work with Martinez on it. “Ricardo Martinez built high-quality re stations for the CFFD for years before I began my rst term as commissioner in May of 2020,” Gordon said. “His team is responsive to our needs and routinely
The Cy-Fair Fire Department’s plan to build eight new re stations could be delayed by up to a year as the Harris County Emergency Ser- vices District No. 9 board—the taxing entity that supports the department’s services—re-evaluates its architecture options. What’s happening During a Dec. 19 meeting, the ve-commissioner board voted 3-2 to review the qualications of other architects, possibly breaking ties with Martinez Architects, which has partnered with the CFFD on its construction projects for several years. Commissioner Kevin Stertzel proposed exploring other options. Choosing a new architect could signicantly delay the construction of all new re stations, as it would require an entirely new design and approval from Harris County, CFFD Fire Chief Amy Ramon said during the Jan. 23 meeting. Ricardo Martinez, president of Martinez Architects, said he plans to pursue the opportunity to continue working with the department. The call for bids was set to close March 7 as of press time. Commissioner Bevin Gordon, the current board’s longest-serving member, voted against pursuing other architects. “I hoped the board would proceed with two station builds with [Martinez Architects] to keep pace with community and call volume growth,” Gordon said. “If we select a new architect, further delays will result while new station plans are being developed.” The background The CFFD’s original plan was to build eight new stations by 2031, building two stations
Cy-Fair Fire Department stations Existing stations Planned stations
N. ELDRIDGE PKWY.
99 TOLL
SPRING CYPRESS RD.
249
290
1960
I T T L E
529
6
N
LOCATIONS FOR PLANNED STATIONS ARE APPROXIMATE AS LAND HAS NOT YET BEEN ACQUIRED FOR EACH FUTURE STATION. SOURCE: CYFAIR FIRE DEPARTMENTCOMMUNITY IMPACT
provides service hours beyond his contractual obligations. ... Ricardo’s team has met or exceeded our standards.” Stay tuned As of early March, department ocials said they either own or are in the process of obtaining land for seven of the eight future stations. Gordon said land acquisition may impact station-building priorities. More decisions are expected to be made at the March 27 meeting.
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