Crime & Safety

New Fire Station to be Built at Cannon Road and Wind Trail Way

The fire station near the intersection of El Camino Real and Cannon Road will replace an aging station and improve emergency response times, said the City of Carlsbad Fire Department.

The new station will be built on two acres on the northwest corner of Cannon Road and Wind Trail Way, about 800 feet from El Camino Real.

The City of Carlsbad Fire Department selected this location over another site in Calavera Hills because it is more centrally located and will improve emergency response times. 

“The original plan was to move to a one-acre site in Calavera Hills,” said City of Carlsbad Fire Chief Kevin Crawford. “But as the needs of the department and the needs of the community increased, it became obvious that that was not only a poor location, but it wasn’t a good size.” 

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As demands on municipal fire departments have increased over the past decade, the demand for space to store equipment has grown apace. The new station is designed to meet current and future needs for emergency services. “We wanted a location that served the central corridor of the city, and with boundary drop the Calavera Hills location is near a fire station in Oceanside, so we recommended making the new station more centrally located,” Crawford said. 

Boundary drop is a system whereby the nearest emergency crew responds to an emergency call, regardless of where the crew or emergency is located. Carlsbad firefighters may respond to Oceanside calls, Encinitas firefighters may respond to Carlsbad calls, and firefighters may be repositioned to different cities during emergencies to maximize service and minimize response times. 

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The new station will be designated Fire Station No. 3, and will replace the current Fire Station No. 3 that occupies a converted house at Chestnut Avenue and Catalina Drive.

The new two-acre site was acquired in Robertson Ranch site for about $1.5 million, and the remaining project cost is estimated at $7.6 million. The estimated construction cost is $5 million. The one-story building will be 28 feet tall at the apparatus bay and will feature a 38-foot high entry element. It will enclose 10,700 square feet, with approximately 5,200 square feet for living, training and administration. The remaining space will house three drive-through bays that will be spacious enough to accommodate the city’s 63-foot-long aerial ladder truck. It will also house emergency equipment.

 “We’re an all-service fire department so we have to have a lot of equipment,” said City of Carlsbad Civic Projects Manager Patrick McGarry. “The community needs will be better met by relocating the station to this location.” McGarry, the project manager for the new fire station, said construction will start this July or August, with occupancy expected on Sept. 1, 2014. “I’m excited about the location and I’m excited about the size of the station,” Crawford said. “It provides a hub for support services in a good location.”

–City of Carlsbad


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