Birmingham Fire Station No. 8
Birmingham Fire Station No. 8 was located at 4100 10th Avenue North (now Richard Arrington Jr Boulevard North) to serve the Kingston community. Amid concerns about roof failures, contaminated water, mold and asbestos, the station was closed on May 9, 2016 and its firefighters and equipment assigned to other stations in Inglenook and Avondale.
Residents of Kingston have petitioned the city to build a replacement fire station in the neighborhood. Mayor William Bell has proposed using $3 million from bond issues to replace the facility, but the Birmingham City Council wanted to also fund repairs to the Carver Theater and to other fire stations and recommended delaying development of another of Bell's proposals, a "Freedom Center" at the A. G. Gaston Motel in order to include the funding in the 2017 Birmingham budget. The impasse ended on August 23 when the City Council accepted a verbal agreement from the mayor to include some of their priorities in budget amendments and voted 9-0 to fund the replacement fire station.
In March 2017 Coca-Cola Bottling Co. United donated a parcel at 4112 Richard Arrington Jr Boulevard North, adjoining the former station, to allow for construction of the new, larger facility.
Equipment
- Engine 8 (currently housed at Birmingham Fire Station No. 10/22)
- Rescue 8 (currently housed at Birmingham Fire Station No. 23)
References
- Journey, Rick (June 21, 2016) "City Hall debate over Birmingham's Kingston Fire Station." WVTM.com
- Chambers, Jesse (August 23, 2016) "Council approves Kingston fire station" Iron City Ink
- West, Ty (March 6, 2017) "Coca-Cola to donate property for city of Birmingham project." Birmingham Business Journal
External links
- Birmingham City Council Press Release funding to replace Fire Station 8.
- Birmingham Fire Station No. 8 at Birmingham Retired Firefighters of Local 117 website