GARDEN GROVE firefighters in action (Dooley photo).

By Jim Tortolano

The green light was given to red fire trucks Tuesday night as the Garden Grove City Council approved two measures costing nearly $6 million which will result in building a new state of the art fire station to serve the city’s east side.

On a 7-0 vote, the council awarded a contract worth $5,535,919 to BABC-EE for the construction of a new station at 12252 West Street – in Westhaven Park – as well as a new community building. Also, the council approved an appropriation of $464,081 for incidental project costs.

“This is an historic action,” said City Manager Scott Stiles. “The city has not built a new fire station in 50 years.”

The new station will take the place of an existing facility at Chapman Avenue and Debbie Lane that’s in a converted single-family home on a residential lot. The new Fire Station 6 will sit on a larger acre-sized lot in the park.

Because of the space taken up by the new station, the existing community building will be removed and a larger facility rebuilt at a different location in the park. Construction on the entire project – fire station and community building – is expected to be completed by July 17, 2018.

Part of the reason for the new facility will be to better serve the high-rise hotels along Harbor Boulevard. The old building is too small to house the equipment needed to fight fires in structures that loom in some cases as tall as 14 stories.

Also Tuesday night, the council approved a mixed-use project in the downtown area. To be constructed is a 16-unit building at 11222 Garden Grove Blvd. (east of Euclid Street) that will include two live-work units facing the street along with 14 condominium units behind. The site is currently vacant and was once the site of a Craig’s restaurant.