City to purchase Third Street parcel for fire station six
Martin Kidston
(Missoula Current) After years of studying the right location for a new fire station, the Missoula Fire Department has settled on property on Third Street with a sales price of $2.3 million.
On Wednesday, the Missoula City Council's Committee on Public Safety unanimously authorized the mayor to purchase the property, bringing plans for Station Six closer to fruition. The price for the 2-acre parcel breaks down to roughly $27 per square foot.
Fire Chief Lonnie Rash said the cost of building a new station has increased since voters passed the Fire Levy in 2024.
“It is much more expensive to build today than it was a couple of years ago,” he said. “I'm hoping we can secure this land so we can move to the next phase of the process.”
The station's planned location holds the corner of Third and Curtis streets and formerly housed the Coca-Cola facility. The property has ample room and would enable fire equipment to maneuver with little disruption to traffic.
If the City Council finalizes the purchase agreement on Monday night, the project would move to design and construction documents, where the full price of the station will be set. But even there, plans may change.
Rash said the department's initial goal sought a 23,000 square-foot station with four engine bays and eight dorm rooms. It would also house the Mobile Support Team, which is under the fire department's support, according to the levy approved by voters.
But given the cost of construction, housing the Mobile Support Team may not work.
“We'll still continue to support them (MST) and need to find a location for them to be permanently housed,” said Rash. “They are in a lease agreement right now for the next couple of years. We'll have to work on that, but not at the cost of what a fire station would cost.”
The station itself may also be downsized to roughly 14,000 square feet, which carries an estimated cost of $16.5 million.
“At the end of the day, we're cost concerned,” said Rash. “We're moving toward a reduced option that may have less bays. We're really in the early phase of what our actual true needs are.”
Rash added that current pricing models account for anticipated inflation.
“When we did the estimation for the actual cost per square foot today, it's actually in 2028 dollars, which is the mid- to late-construction time frame. It does include all the predicted or assumed increases in inflation and construction costs,” he said.
City Council members on Wednesday offered unanimous support for purchasing the property and moving on to the project's next phase.
“These numbers are real and they're important to our community,” said council member Amber Sherrill. “Every piece of land in the city isn't available for us to swoop in and build a fire station. I know it's been a long time coming and a very scientific approach to what we're able to get and how we can serve our community the best.”