Cleveland has opened a new Fire Station 26 on 4 September in the Kinsman neighborhood, designed as a community hub for residents.
Fire Station 26, located on Kinsman Road in Cleveland, has been designed to combine the operations of former stations 41 and 26 and it intends to represent a shift in how the city views the role of first responder buildings in the community, according to officials.
Cleveland Fire Chief Anthony Luke shared: “This is a home for the community.
“This is a safe place where you can come to get help, to get information or any other needs that you have.”
The new facility also includes dedicated space for community engagement. The building has a community room that could be used for events, Luke noted, highlighting the facility’s public accessibility.
Luke described Mayor Justin Bibb as the “primary architect” of getting the project done.
While then-Mayor Frank Jackson initiated the project and the city broke ground in October 2022, Mayor Bibb presided over the station’s completion.
Bibb shared his perspective: “They’re not just places for the men and women of fire and EMS to come and get rest and wait for the next 911 call, but they are truly a hub for our community.”
“It’s a hub for safety, hub for resources, but especially on Kinsman Road on the southeast side, hub for promise, hope and opportunity, as well.”
The project represents a collaborative effort that involved two city administrations, City Council, local unions and community groups, such as the Vanguards, a group supporting Black firefighters.
Cleveland City Council President Blaine Griffin praised the facility as “part of the renaissance” of the neighborhood.
Griffin explained: “When you build these kinds of anchors in our community, it gives pride to young men and women as they walk by these areas and they say one day that they can be a firefighter, a paramedic or that they can be an EMS officer.”
Griffin also hopes the new station’s location will improve response times to allow safety workers to arrive at 911 calls quicker.
Bibb stated how the project also includes plans for the old Station 26 to be used as a community hub for residents.
The city plans to dedicate the old building to the Vanguards and fire department to maintain its historical significance, as the former station was built in 1898.
City officials view the new station as potentially setting a standard for future public safety facilities. Councilman Michael Polensek, the chairman of City Council’s Public Safety Committee, toured the new firehouse before the ribbon cutting ceremony.
He called the building “the prototype which we hope will be magnified and utilized throughout the city as it pertains to the other locations where we have to replace warehouses.”
The opening comes as part of a broader initiative to improve first responder facilities citywide. Polensek noted that the city recently passed legislation allocating $21 million to rebuild the city’s five police districts.
Safety Director Wayne Drummond said during the ceremony: “One of the things that we are committed to, not only in the Department of Public Safety, but with the mayor’s administration, is to make sure that our firefighters and EMS personnel have a safe, warm and cool environment which they can work out of.”
Cleveland has opened a new Fire Station 26 on 4 September in the Kinsman neighborhood, designed as a community hub for residents.
