City-Township Commission to finalize design, timetable for new fire station
With a rather convincing yes vote, the Frankenmuth Fire Department personnel are looking forward to a bright future with a new and spacious fire station.
Frankenmuth Township voters passed the millage with a tally of 493 yes votes to 281 no votes. This 20-year fire station bond will begin in 2027. This bond will cost city and township taxpayer approximately $10 million, with the split 75-percent city and 25-percent township.
The FFD New Station Committee will meet with members of the Frankenmuth City-Township Commission on Tuesday afternoon, August 18, to discuss the design, proposed timetable, and construction process for the new station.
The fire hall will be built on an already purchased four-acre parcel near the northeast corner of West Genesee Street and Dehmel Road. At an estimated cost of about $10 million, the New Station Committee has been working with TSSF Architects.
The current station was erected in 1952 and measures 6,335-square feet, which has lacked for space and equipment for many years. The new station will allow fire engines to pull out of the garage bays safely on Genesee Street and upon returning from the fire call, use Dehmel Road to drive into the bays, instead of backing in.
The new station will measure approximately 16,000-square feet. Preparation to build a new station has been in the works for nearly a decade. The future use of the existing fire hall will also be discussed by the City-Township Commission.
The FFD had two responses last week, upping their 2026 alarm total to 138 calls for service.
At 2:53pm Tuesday, August 4, the FFD was called for mutual aid to Bridgeport and Buena Vista fire departments for a house fire in the 4700 block of Fort Road, Bridgeport Township.
FFD Captain Doug VanWormer said the Frankenmuth crew assisted with overhaul in the split-level, single-family home that suffered fire damage to the attached garage and smoke damage to the home. Engine 1 with six fire personnel were on scene for 90 minutes, with a dozen firefighters reporting to the station.
At 8:09pm Saturday, August 8, the FFD was called to assist at an unknown vehicle crash on South Main Street near Weiss Street. Eleven firefighters made the trip to the station and were immediately cleared by the Frankenmuth Police prior to offering a response.
In other FFD news, mid-month training took place Tuesday evening, August 11, as the firefighters met with Frankenmuth School District officials to pre-plan for this years indoor and outdoor athletic events and review updates on emergency response plans.
On Wednesday, August 5, the Saginaw County emergency siren testing at 7pm experienced system technology issues and was postponed until 9am Thursday, August 6.
“Our community’s three sirens did not activate for this testing,” FFD Chief Phil Kerns explained.
The FFD was awarded a $600 training grant from HSC. This grant is typically used to send a firefighter candidate to the Saginaw County Fire Academy in the fall and helps the department offset local costs, Kerns said.
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