The city of Lansing has opened a new $7.8 million fire station in south Lansing, replacing a station built in the 1950s with a modern 21,000-square-foot home for firefighters and a community room for the neighbourhood it serves. About 100 residents gathered on Monday, 9 November, to celebrate the opening of Lansing Fire Station 9, the first big project completed under the $175 million public-safety plan voters approved in 2022.
Read this story on Watan News: Lansing Opens New $7.8 Million Fire Station 9 as Community Celebrates
FAKTA
- Lansing Fire Department unveiled the new Fire Station 9 at 2320 S. Washington Ave. on Monday, 9 November 2026, with a ribbon-cutting ceremony attended by about 100 community members.
- The station cost about $7.8 million and covers about 21,000 square feet, with five apparatus bays, decontamination areas, a fitness centre and a community room.
- It replaces the old Fire Station 9 at 520 Glendale Ave., built in 1954, which had only two apparatus bays.
- Lansing Mayor Andy Schor, Fire Chief Carrie Edwards-Clemons and Board of Fire Commissioners chair Steve Purchase attended the opening and thanked residents for voting in 2022 for the $175 million public safety proposal that funded the station.
- The $175 million proposal also covers a $73.3 million police station, a $33.1 million District Court relocation, $13.8 million for fire station replacement and renovations, administrative costs of up to $23.6 million, $14.4 million for contingency and $16.6 million for predicted inflation.
- More projects follow: a new $40 million Lansing City Hall is expected to open by the end of November, and the new public safety complex should finish by the end of the year, with an opening tentatively scheduled for January.
- City officials celebrated the opening of the newly renovated Fire Station 2 on Grand River Avenue in November 2025.
A New Home for South Lansing Firefighters
The new station stands at 2320 S. Washington Ave., on the same campus as the planned public safety complex. It replaces a building from 1954 that had served south Lansing for more than 70 years but had only two apparatus bays and none of the facilities a modern fire service needs. The old station, at 520 Glendale Ave., dated from the 1950s and had become out of date for the crews and equipment it had to house.
“As we celebrate the opening of this fire station today, let us remember what it represents — a community that invested in public safety, a city that believes in its firefighters and a shared commitment to a safer, stronger Lansing,” Mayor Andy Schor said at the ceremony, as applause broke out several times during the speeches.
Inside Lansing Fire Station 9
The new building is about 21,000 square feet — the architects put it at 21,700 square feet — with five apparatus bays, decontamination areas, a fitness centre and a community room. The decontamination areas matter: they let firefighters clean equipment and protective gear after a call, reducing exposure to smoke and chemicals. The community room gives the neighbourhood a public space inside the station itself, and a new ambulance will be housed there.
Fire Chief Carrie Edwards-Clemons and Board of Fire Commissioners chair Steve Purchase joined the mayor in thanking residents. Purchase noted that the old station, built in 1954, had only two bays — less than half the capacity of the new building.
The Michigan State Capitol in Lansing. The city is investing $175 million in new public buildings, starting with Fire Station 9.
Voters Paid for It
The station was funded by the $175 million public safety proposal that Lansing voters approved in 2022. The proposal laid out plans for a new $73.3 million police station, the $33.1 million District Court relocation, $13.8 million for fire station replacement and renovations, administrative costs of up to $23.6 million, $14.4 million for contingency plans and $16.6 million for predicted inflation. The same programme is rebuilding Fire Stations 2 and 8 and a fire training facility that can train 30 cadets per class.
Old Station vs New Station
| Old Fire Station 9 | New Fire Station 9 | |
|---|---|---|
| Address | 520 Glendale Ave. | 2320 S. Washington Ave. |
| Built | 1954 | 2026 |
| Size | Two apparatus bays | About 21,000 sq ft, five apparatus bays |
| Facilities | Basic station | Decontamination areas, fitness centre, community room |
| Cost | — | About $7.8 million |
More to Come
The opening of Fire Station 9 kicks off a string of major projects in Lansing. Mayor Schor confirmed that a new $40 million Lansing City Hall is expected to open by the end of the month along Grand Avenue, across from the Capital Area Transportation Authority’s bus station. Separate work on the centrepiece of the $175 million proposal — a new public safety complex — should finish by the end of the year, with an opening tentatively scheduled for January. The renovated Fire Station 2 on Grand River Avenue opened in November 2025.
Conclusion
For the firefighters of south Lansing, Monday was the end of 70 years in a two-bay station from the 1950s and the start of a modern home built for the job. For the city, it was the first visible return on the $175 million its voters approved four years ago — and the first of several new public buildings still to open.
