The Evergreen Fire Department will burn down its own fire station on Saturday in order to make way for a new facility.
The controlled burn will also act as a live training exercise for the firefighters, with preparations beginning at 7 a.m. and the actual burn taking place at 11 a.m. Members of the public are invited to view the fire from Andy’s Auto Glass located at 2237 Highway 2 E., but won’t be allowed on district property.
Volunteers built the department’s current fire station located on U.S. Highway 2 in the 1950s. It’s been in use every since, often acting as a defacto community gathering place as well as station headquarters. But last fall, fire officials said the building was in such disrepair and is so out-dated that a remodel or additions are all but impossible, and Evergreen voters approved a $4.4 million bond to fund a new fire station.
Following the burn, preparation will begin for the new 19,200 square-foot station at the same site. The building’s apparatus bays are expected to be ready for occupancy in July, with the total project slated for completion in November.
For more information on the project go to evergreenfirerescue.net or call 406-752-4636.