Community Invited to Dec. 8, 2023, Grand Opening of Fire Station No. 1 in Downtown Arlington

By Susan Schrock, Office of Communication

Posted on November 29, 2023, November 29, 2023

The community is invited to help the City of Arlington celebrate the grand opening and dedication of Fire Station 1. The ceremony is set for 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Friday, Dec. 8, 2023, at 401 W. Main St. in Downtown.

Arlington broke ground on the more modern, more efficient Downtown fire station in March 2022. The two-story, 17,667-square-foot station replaces the previous Fire Station No. 1, which originally opened in 1954 and had gone through various remodels over the decades.

The new facility, approved by voters as part of the 2014 Bond Program, is designed to provide a better work and living space for Arlington’s firefighters. Features include five larger, drive-thru apparatus bays that can hold more equipment, training areas and indoor and outdoor kennels for the Fire Department’s K9 Unit, a full kitchen and a dining room, and various offices.

Living quarters for the station’s three shift crews, who each spend 24 hours working from the Downtown station, were also improved. Firefighters on shift will no longer have to share an open dormitory space. The second story of the new station offers 12 private dorm rooms and separate men’s and women’s bathrooms with showers.

The station also includes a public space for community events and meetings as well as a museum area where residents can learn about the Arlington Fire Department’s history and accomplishments and see historical items up close, such as an antique fire truck.

Additionally, the new station’s design includes several energy-saving features, such as Low-E windows with a solar ban coating, a mechanical system with variable refrigerant volume, low-flow plumbing fixtures, and native landscaping that requires minimal irrigation systems.