In the 1980s, the East Grand Fire Protection District came to the realization that it needed an additional fire station on the southeast end of the county. As numbers of residents and visitors increased over the decades, the district solidified plans for this new station in addition to its posts in Fraser, Tabernash and Red Dirt Hill.

Now, the dream of another station is finally reality. Located at Old Town Road in the former Lone Tree parking lot at Winter Park Resort, the station will house East Grand Fire and Grand County EMS.

Fire and EMS personnel, along with other stakeholders, gathered Dec. 4 to celebrate the new station.

At the celebration, East Grand Fire board of directors member Ryan Barwick said that partnering with EMS “allows our responders to be better positioned for today and, more importantly, for tomorrow.”

Barwick explained that East Grand Fire gets more than 400 emergency calls a year in its 209-square-mile coverage area, which includes the Fraser Valley from the top of Berthoud Pass to Red Dirt Hill and from the Continental Divide to Byers Peak, encompassing the towns of Winter Park, Fraser and Tabernash.

The southern portion of Winter Park accounts for about 30% of those calls, Barwick said.

“With the opening of this station comes a quicker response to those calls,” he said. “When a response to an accident on Berthoud Pass takes over 10 minutes, seconds matter.”

After speeches from stakeholders, EMS and fire department staff raised the U.S. flag and uncoupled a fire hose — a unique twist on the traditional ribbon cutting. Afterward, everyone headed inside to enjoy cake to celebrate East Grand Fire Chief Todd Holzwarth’s birthday. The event ended with a tour of the operational rooms and staff housing.

Fire station progress over the years

Stakeholders broke ground on the station in June 2023, and several local entities stepped in to build the station: M.A. Studios (formerly Munn Architecture) provided design, general contractors Big Valley Construction led the project, and subcontractor Nick’s Dirt Works completed the excavation.

The end result is a 12,000-square-foot building with two bays for emergency vehicles plus housing for staff and volunteers. The staff housing includes seven rooms, communal spaces and a kitchen that can be used by EMS and the fire district.

The land did not cost the fire district anything thanks to the managing association of Winter Park Resort providing the space in the early 2000s. The association conveyed the land to the town of Winter Park, which then conveyed it for the fire station. The district spent at least $500,000 to develop the site from a parking lot.

EMS is currently using the space, and the fire district is working on a staffing plan for volunteers to move into the housing. Holzwarth and EMS Chief Austin Wingate will share the duties of managing the station’s staff. A springtime open house is also planned for the public to see the new station.