New fire station aims to improve response times

Published 1:30 am Friday, July 17, 2026

South Whidbey Fire/EMS wants to build a new station to replace two others in an effort to improve response times in an underserved area.

At a special meeting last month, fire commissioners approved the purchase of property at 6557 Cultus Bay Road in Clinton. The new station would replace two nearby volunteer-era stations that are generally unstaffed and place firefighters in the southeast portion of the district.

A new station may cost between $8 million and $10 million, Commissioner Jim Towers estimated, although the project is in its infancy. The station’s design — which factors into its price tag — may not be finished for another six months.

The district hopes to complete the station between 2029 and 2030.

Station 32, located on Central Avenue in Clinton, and Station 33, located on French Road closer to Maxwelton, are old and fail to meet some modern safety standards, Towers explained. Built as volunteer stations, they lack living quarters because volunteers were expected to respond from home.

That is why those two stations are unstaffed, according to Lt. Alex McMahon.

“They’re quaint stations, and they served their purpose back in the day, but now that we have full-time staffing, it doesn’t allow for overnight staying,” she said. “And as we acquire more volunteers, more full-time staff, it doesn’t allow for everybody to hang out in one station.”

The new station is expected to reduce response times in the area without increasing them for Maxwelton and Clinton. Crews from staffed stations can generally arrive on-scene quicker than those coming from elsewhere, Towers explained.

Consolidating stations, McMahon pointed out, may also save the district money by decreasing future operational overhead.

It took the district “the better part of a year” to find a suitable property, Towers said, and landing the one it did was as a “big relief.”

The district considered two other properties before selecting the Cultus Bay Road site, which, according to the county, has an assessed value of $412,000 and is owned by Randall Haller. There is one residential structure on the land, which appears largely undeveloped otherwise.

South Whidbey Fire/EMS is paying $450,000 for the property, which is “under (the district’s) budget” according to the special meeting’s minutes. A land-use permit is still needed, but Towers believes the district will obtain it without issue.

Unless the price of the new station is significantly higher than expected, Towers said, a further increase in property taxes is unnecessary. Towers said the district has enough money from the levy voters approved in 2024 to fund the project. Money that would have been spent on seismic retrofits at Stations 32 and 33 — a pretty expensive process, Towers said — will contribute to financing the station, as well as money made from selling those properties.

Some of the characteristics of the new station have already been decided.

Three apparatus bays are planned and will be able to house an engine, a tender and a medical emergency response vehicle or an ambulance. Living quarters will be separated from the bays and turnout areas with an “airlock,” Towers explained, limiting firefighters’ exposure to carcinogens from gear and other equipment.

Energy-efficient features, like solar panels, may be added.

While building a new station is a key component of the district’s strategic plan, adopted earlier this year, Towers anticipates the community may still have questions about the project’s financing, the effect on response times and potential neighborhood impacts.

To that point, Towers said the district cautions crews against using lights and sirens when departing stations unless “absolutely essential,” knowing the noise can rouse neighbors from sleep at night. At the proposed station location, specifically, the district will try to create buffers between the facility and adjacent properties and ensure the building’s design is cohesive with its surroundings.

“I think we’re actually a pretty good neighbor,” Towers said.

Terra Anderson, a Freeland resident and member of South Whidbey Prepares, is familiar with the district’s efforts to build its new station. South Whidbey Prepares partners with South Whidbey Fire/EMS to encourage emergency preparedness. The group’s goal is to help neighborhoods become more self-sufficient in the event a major disaster overwhelms public safety agencies.

While questions remain for Anderson as to how the station will physically and aesthetically fit in its neighborhood, she emphasized that its location is important for lowering response times. Minutes can be the difference between life and death.

“I think many of us, especially who are doing the emergency management work now, really want our neighbors to have close access to emergency services,” she said.

A presentation and question-and-answer session about the proposed station is scheduled for the board of commissioners’ July 29 meeting. Meetings are held in person at Station 36 on Bayview Road in Langley but can be attended remotely as well.