New Elgin fire station now open for business

Life is full of firsts -- that first kiss, keys to the starter home, your first born.

But what about the first call for a new fire station?

Usually, that means something bad happened to someone somewhere.

But it also is a chance for firefighters to help others and do some good in the world.

The first emergency call for Elgin's newest fire station --Number 7 -- came in at 2:43 p.m. Monday, nearly eight hours after it officially "opened" for response and rescue.

It turned out the fire alarm at a west-side church was a malfunction.

City leaders and fire department officials said they hope the $5 million facility, at Bowes Road and Longcommon Parkway, will help reduce response times for neighborhoods in the newest parts of town.

At the same time, if other stations don't have to venture so far west, their crews can be in position to respond faster to emergencies in other areas of the city.

In 2006, it took rescue crews just more than 11 minutes to respond to 90 percent of calls from two far west-side districts.

Assistant Fire Chief Mike Baker couldn't provide a good estimate on what new response times would be, but said they definitely would be lower.

"It will have an effect. That's why we positioned the station there," he said. "This will definitely decrease response times. We'll have to wait and see (by how much)."

Officials also noted the station is close to several large subdivisions, including Edgewater, a 1,000-plus unit development for adults 55 and older.

Crews still must plant landscaping, but the grand opening and open house will be held in June, Baker said.

On Monday, firefighters unpacked gear and drove through neighborhoods.

"It's always good to have drivers know their area," Baker said.

The station will host a full-service ambulance and a fire engine with all ambulance abilities except for transporting patients to the hospital.

The station also has a third bay to perform maintenance on the department's 36 vehicles.

Talk of "going green" may be all the rage now, but in preparing Station 7, city leaders took several steps to make it environmentally friendly.

For example, recycled material was used in steel support beams, windows and floor tiles. Steps to reduce operating costs, such as a lighting system that turns off when a room is empty, have been added.

"This is going to be a much more sustainable building, environmentally," said city council member John Walters, who noted that with the location "we'll certainly be able to provide backup for all the stuff that happens on Randall Road way too often."