Los Alamos County to break ground on fully electric Fire Station 4

Los Alamos County will break ground Wednesday on a replacement Fire Station No. 4 at 4401 Diamond Drive, a project meant to correct drainage problems, basement water intrusion and contamination-control gaps at the 1964 building while keeping emergency response on the south side of town in service.

The ceremony is set for 2:30 p.m. on May 20. County officials say the new station is being designed as much for operations as for appearance, with five double apparatus bays, co-ed living space for up to 10 first responders, and dedicated rooms for EMS, public education, honor guard duties and the wildland fire division. County leaders have said the current building was not designed for female firefighters, larger modern apparatus or the hot-zone and decontamination separation now expected in newer stations.

The county is also pushing the project as its first fully electric facility. The plan calls for heat-pump technology and photovoltaic panels to reduce dependence on grid electricity, linking the station directly to the county Climate Action Plan and its goals of carbon neutrality by 2050, a 30% greenhouse-gas reduction by 2030 and an 80% reduction by 2040, all measured from a 2022 baseline. County officials say the design is meant to improve firefighter health, turnout speed, recruitment and day-to-day efficiency, and Randall Ryti has called the new station “very much needed.”

The project moved into construction after the County Council approved Spartan Construction of New Mexico’s $17.9 million bid on April 7. County project materials say notice to proceed was to follow by April 12, with substantial completion targeted for Sept. 30, 2028 and final completion by Nov. 15, 2028. The county says it has received about $4 million from the State of New Mexico over the years toward replacing Fire Station No. 4.

Officials chose the current site on Nov. 12, 2024 after public meetings on Sept. 23, Oct. 15 and Oct. 21, 2024 and a survey that closed Nov. 29, 2024. Locating the station next to the existing one is intended to minimize land disturbance and allow fire operations to continue during construction. Parking at the site will be limited, so the county is asking attendees to use the Los Alamos County Golf Course parking area if possible and walk over via the tunnel and trail.

The new station will be a visible test of whether Los Alamos can deliver on public safety, workforce needs and climate goals at the same time. Residents will be able to judge it by whether the county keeps calls covered during construction, finishes on schedule, and opens a station that actually fixes the problems the old one has carried for decades.