A groundbreaking ceremony was held Wednesday morning marking the beginning of construction for Corpus Christi's new Fire Station 18, and one of its biggest proponents was in attendance as a special guest.
Former Councilwoman Priscilla Leal, who suffered a stroke in 2014 and had to retire from City Council, was a leading proponent of the $6.25 million bond to construct Fire Station 18, which voters approved in 2008. Officials said the project was delayed because the new station had to be redesigned in order to fit within the Corpus Christi Fire Department's limited budget.
Councilwoman Lucy Rubio, Leal's successor, told 3News earlier this year that the new fire station was much needed because of long response times to people in the area.
Mayor Nelda Martinez, City Manager Margie Rose and other City Council members were also on hand as Corpus Christi Fire Chief Robert Rocha introduced them to the new construction site, located at 6226 Ayers Street, near Saratoga Boulevard.
The fire station project consists of a new single story building with concrete paving drives, a parking area, new utilities and more.
