Property Purchased To Rebuild 2 Destroyed Joplin Fire Stations
By: Drew Moore
Updated: May 11, 2012
JOPLIN, MO -- Fire station 2, which is located at 22nd and Maiden Lane will now move to 13th Street and Schifferdecker. Fire station 4, which is located near 15th Street and Connecticut, will be rebuilt at 34th Street and Hearnes Boulevard.
The funds from selling the land where the stations are currently located, will cover the $298,000 needed to purchase the new lots. With the addition of the two new locations, Joplin fire crews will be able to respond to an emergency in under 4 minutes to 90% of the city.
Joplin Fire Chief Mitch Randles says the new stations will cost approximately $2.8 million dollars to build. The majority of the costs will be covered by insurance and F.E.M.A., the rest will come from the city's general fund. "We have been very careful to make sure that we maximize our dollars we got back from insurance, and F.E.M.A." Randles explains. "We are going to get the best bang for our buck, and spend as little tax payer dollars as we can"
Randles says they hope to break ground on the new facilities by next January, the goal is to have the stations open by the end of next year.
