PRAIRIE VILLAGE, Kan. — When a new fire station opens near 77th Street and Mission Road, firefighters and emergency medical technicians (EMT) will be better positioned to respond to the growing number of emergency calls the fire district receives.
Johnson County Consolidated Fire District No. 2 is one of three fire agencies building new stations right now.
Shawnee hopes to open a new station near 53rd Street and Woodsonia Drive in January. Kansas City broke ground on a station on Cookingham Drive in the northeast corner of the city this year.
Chief Tony Lopez, from the Consolidated Fire District No. 2, said the new station in Prairie Village should open in February or March of 2019.
The district will relocate firefighters and trucks from a current station on Roe Avenue. Lopez said a study showed while the district serves eight municipalities, the majority of calls came from central Prairie Village, so building a station there would improve response times.
"It puts us in the highest volume area. I can't say how many minutes it will save, but it will certainly save quite a bit," Lopez said.
The new station will cost roughly $6 million.
Shawnee Fire Chief John Mattox said building a new station in the city's northwest side will improve response times by up to five minutes to about 11,000 properties. He said it also positions firefighters to be able to serve new developments coming to the area.
Mattox said the department has hired 12 new firefighters and purchased a new truck, which will all be ready to move into the new station when it opens in January. The project will cost about $5 million.
Kansas City, Missouri leaders said the Shoal Creek neighborhoods and the northeastern section of the I-435 loop are the fastest-growing parts of the city. They said the development requires better firefighting and emergency medical services.
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