Sentinel file photo
NEW FIRE STATION – A grand opening and open house for the new Waltonville Fire Station will be held on Sunday, Sept. 8 from 2-4 p.m. Photo shows, from left, Assistant Fire Chief Scott Pennington, Firefighter Paul Pennington and Firefighter Ryan Hays standing next to one of the vehicles in the new station.
By TRAVIS MORSE
WALTONVILLE – The official opening and open house for the new Waltonville Fire Station No. 2 will be held Sunday, September 8, from 2 to 4 p.m. at the station located at 5998 N. Nason Lane.
The new station officially opened last April, and Waltonville Fire Protection District officials say the new facility has been a huge help. The department is all volunteers, and the new station has already attracted more volunteers, said Assistant Fire Chief Scott Pennington.
“It’s probably even better than expected,” Pennington said of the new station. “Our response has been better and faster, and we’ve distributed equipment evenly between the two stations, so we’re able to respond more quickly to the incidents we need to respond to. We’ve got some new people and some young people who have stepped up. I know that’s what attracted them to this Station 2 and now they want to be a part of it. These young people are eager and ready to get started.”
The Sept. 8 celebration will include a grand opening at 2 p.m. and an open house that will last until 4 p.m. that day. Drinks and cupcakes will be available, as well as Bubba Too’s world-famous pizza. All Waltonville FPD equipment from both fire stations will be on display during the opening, according to a news release about the event.
“People have been donating to us for many years,” Pennington said. “This is a great way for us to showcase all the equipment and supplies we’ve been able to purchase thanks to our community.”
Planning for this project began in 2018 when Waltonville FPD officials were looking for a way to build a second fire station to better serve the district. Excavation work on the new station began on October 3, 2023, and the concrete portion of the project started on October 24, 2023. Construction on the building itself began on February 2, 2024, which was earlier than the original schedule, according to Sentinel archives.
The 22,000-square-foot fire station is located at Illinois Route 148 and Nason Lane, a central location for that portion of the fire district. Vehicles housed in the new station include a rescue/extraction vehicle, a rescue/brush vehicle and a tender, records state.
The Waltonville FPD’s first or primary station is located in downtown Waltonville and officials say the second station is needed to provide better coverage of the entire fire district. With the second station, both locations now have equal capacity as far as equipment goes. However, the district is now better balanced overall as far as equipment and volunteer locations go, the archives say.
The second station will allow the district to more efficiently respond to calls no matter where they occur throughout the district and also respond to mutual aid for other departments, Pennington said.
The grand opening event on September 8th is open to the general public. For more information, contact the Waltonville Fire Protection District.
