Take a look at DeKalb’s new fire station

DeKALB – The city of DeKalb‘s fourth fire station, 1130 S. Malta Road, is officially in service.

DeKalb city leaders recently invited residents to help mark the occasion by hosting a grand opening celebration.

“It was really, really nice getting this project across the finish line,” DeKalb Fire Chief Mike Thomas said. “It is really a testament to all of the different team members that were involved in this project, and to have the community come out was thrilling because their support and comments along the way have all been positive and very welcoming.”

Building tours and public remarks by DeKalb officials were among highlights from the event, helping the city commemorate the new fire station coming online. Officials estimated that about 100 people came to the April 26 event.

Second Ward Alderwoman Barb Larson said she was blown away by the turnout.

“I was amazed because there were tons of firefighters there, of course, but from other places,” Larson said. “If you want to see the new and the best, you go to the newest one that opened. But a lot from other departments were there. The neighbors right behind the fire station, they were there because they wanted to say publicly how fabulous this was.”

ExpandAutoplay

Image 1 of 22

Community members watch a demonstration at one of the ambulances on display outside DeKalb Fire Station No. 4 at 1130 S. Malta Road at a grand opening event on Saturday, April 26, 2025. (Photo provided by City of DeKalb)

Officials have said the project was a long time in the making.

Construction of the fire station was approved by the City Council in July 2023. Officials said it was needed to improve emergency response times for residents in the city’s southwest quadrant near the Schnucks shopping center.

In May 2024, DeKalb city leaders hosted a groundbreaking ceremony to mark the start of construction.

An informal ceremony for the station was held April 11, when it first went into operation. At that time, officials said the building’s construction had yet to be completed in its entirety.

Since then, the building has been outfitted with all the latest bells and whistles.

Thomas said the fire station was completed within budget and only took a few days more than expected.

The city had about a $4 million budget to construct the fire station, officials said.

Thomas said much of the progress was dependent on waiting for vendors to supply needed electronics to operate, including radio communications and station alerts that help firefighters know when a 911 call goes out.

The DeKalb Fire Department staffs 74 personnel, including recruits for the new station, officials said.

“Our HR department has been very busy recruiting and hiring,” Thomas said. “We’ve been able to keep pace. We have some retirements along the way, also, that put pressure on that.”

Third Ward Alderman Tracy Smith, a retired DeKalb police officer, said he’s glad to see the city take some steps to improve equipment that first responders need.

“The demand on public service, especially police and fire, has gone up, as we know, and especially in the medical field,” Smith said. “We need the fire department. We need the police department, so we need to support them not only with stations but equipment, because there’s newer technology out there constantly.”

Sixth Ward Alderman Mike Verbic said residents appear to be supportive of the new fire station, which falls in his ward.

“They’re thrilled that that can be home for fire safety and EMS,” Verbic said. “Having it so close, whereas before – certainly response times were still very prompt, but there’s a level of confidence that, not that there was concern before, but now an added level of confidence that we will be responded to as promptly as humanly possible."

Mayor Cohen Barnes shared that sentiment.

“Everyone that I’ve talked [to] is really happy about it, especially since we didn’t have to raise taxes,” Barnes said. “We continue to have a balanced budget, so taxpayers, when they live in a community, they want to know that the taxes they pay they’re getting a return on that investment. I think the residents of DeKalb are really seeing that with a new fire station.”

Thomas said the new fire station appears to be paying off just as he imagined it would.

“Having this new facility has alleviated some of the pressure on the other stations, obviously, for the call volume,” Thomas said. “We are definitely getting to our calls in that quadrant faster than we were without that facility.”