Temporary Santa Rosa Fire Station Opens At Site Destroyed By Fire

SANTA ROSA, CA - Santa Rosa Fire Station 5 will open in a temporary location Friday, replacing for a time the fire station on Newgate Court that was destroyed in the 2017 Tubbs Fire. Firefighters began moving in equipment last week and will staff the station at 3480 Parker Hill Road beginning Friday, the city of Santa Rosa Fire Department said in a news release.

The temporary Parker Hill Road station will help improve the fire department's response times to northeast Santa Rosa, fire Chief Tony Gossner said.

"It will also enable us to provide better coverage to Fountaingrove and Hidden Valley during the ongoing rebuilding and recovery of our community," Gossner said.

The site of the new temporary fire station was the former location of Fire Station 5 before closing in August 2015 when the station was relocated to Newgate Court.

"The vacant Parkerhill Road station was also destroyed in the Tubbs Fires," said Assistant Santa Rosa fire Marshal Paul Lowenthal.

After the October 2017 firestorm leveled both sites, Station 5 firefighters were temporarily housed at Station 1 at 955 Sonoma Ave., Lowenthal explained.

The city broke ground on the temporary fire station project in July. Construction was managed by the city's Transportation and Public Works Department, with the station designed to be functional and low-cost to maintain in the interim of constructing a permanent station.

The city's plan for rebuilding Fire Station 5 includes exploration of potential new site opportunities that will better meet the needs of the community, fire department officials said.

"Public safety is the city's top priority," Chief Gossner said.

Google Maps image of former Station 5 at 3480 Parker Hill Road, Santa Rosa:

Google Maps image of former Station 5 at 2201 Newgate Court, Santa Rosa:

Lead image from video by city of Santa Rosa Fire Department