CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Walls are finally going up for the new Fire Station Number 3 being built along Morgan Avenue, next to the old fire station still being used after nearly 70 years of service.
"I couldn’t be happier for our firefighters," Corpus Christi Fire Department Chief Brandon Wade said. "This station is almost 70 years old that they’re working out of and really it was designed for a time in which the fire service didn’t do as much as we do now. We are essentially an all hazards department."
However, the fire chief is not exactly happy that his department won’t be moving in next month, and won't be until February. After several foundation test piles were drilled, it was discovered that the design wouldn’t work. The water table was too shallow and construction came to a halt and plans had to be changed.
"It’s reinforced concrete grade beams basically," engineer Jeff Edmonds with the City of Corpus Christi said. "So, rather than being on a deep foundation it’s on more of a floating foundation."
Now that the project is moving forward, Wade is hoping it will be the first of many new fire stations built over the next few years.
"This is one of many as we looking to replace some of our older fire stations that are over 50/60 years old and just trying to build that work environment for our firefighters," he said.
By the way, while the project is behind schedule by 120 days or so, it’s still on budget at just over $10 million.