Fire Station Location Project
After assessing the City’s Fire Response Services in 2016, the City studied alternative locations for a new fire station, to consolidate Stations 2 and 3 into one remote fire station along the Highway 100 corridor. On September 16, 2025, the Golden Valley City Council approved 1875 Lilac Drive N, on the southwest corner of Highway 100 and Duluth Street.
Current Locations Of Fire Stations
The City’s three current fire station locations are not geographically optimized for today’s updated highway system. Station 3 provides coverage for Minneapolis, while Station 2 (Turners Crossroad) no longer connects to main roads but also provides coverage into St Louis Park. Renovating existing stations is not feasible due to costs and restrictions posed by the current site sizes. To improve efficiencies and response times, the City needs to consolidate Stations 2 and 3 to one remote fire station along the Hwy 100 corridor, at 1875 Lilac Drive.
Site Selection Process and Timeline
2016: Five Bugles Report assessing fire response needs and indicating need to consolidate stations 2 and 3 into one station (“remote fire station”) along Highway 100. Also noted need for a 24/7 staffing model, where the City currently uses paid, on-call firefighters.
2021: Municipal Facilities Master Plan Study completed, identifying estimated square footage/size needs for a remote fire station and solidifying need for 24/7 staffing model.
2022 - 2023: The City researched possible sites for the remote fire station, now being referred to as the East Fire Station. 31 possible sites were researched, including residential, commercial, and park properties. These sites were further narrowed down to 6 sites, based on the scoring matrix.
2025: The City Council passed a resolution identifying 1875 Lilac Drive as the site for the East Fire Station (originally site 25b).
Explore helpful resources about the Fire Station Location decision.
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Five Bugles Final Report: Golden Valley Fire Rescue (2016)
Learn about the report that assessed Golden Valley’s fire response services.
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Municipal Facilities Master Plan Study (2021)
Learn about the study that helped inform plans for future downtown Golden Valley and City facilities.
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Virtual Fire Station Location Open House
Watch the Virtual Station Location Project Open House, hosted February 9, 2023.
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Firefighting: A Profession In Transition
Learn more about how the proposed plan will help retain and attract firefighting staff.
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Tax Incidence Study
Read the University of Minnesota’s tax analysis and estimated impact on residents and non-residents.
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Community Input Report
Learn more about the City Facilities Study and how residents helped prioritize investments.
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May 14, 2023 City Council Meeting
Watch this City Council Work Session where the Council discussed fire station site selection.
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March 14, 2023 City Council Meeting
Watch the City Council Work Session where the Council discussed fire station site selection.
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February 14, 2023 City Council Meeting
Watch the City Council Work Session where the City Council discussed fire station site selection.
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Fire Station Location Analysis: Development Corridor Maps
Review the presentation on location analysis from February 2023.
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Fire Station Location Scoring Matrix (Revised)
Learn more about the sites that were evaluated for the East Fire Station location.
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Response vs. Housing Affordability Map (PDF)
Review the housing affordability and response map from February 2023, outlining possible response times for a single-station model and estimated market value of households in the area.
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Schaper Park Story Map
The City Council directed Staff to research Schaper Park. Review the storymap about the history of Schaper Park, once indicated as a possible site for the East Fire Station.
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Review Scoring Guidelines
Review the scoring guidelines matrix used to analyze potential sites for the East Fire Station.
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January 10, 2023 City Council Meeting
Watch the City Council Work Session where the City Council discussed fire station site selection.
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Review Matrix of Possible Locations
Review the matrix of possible locations for the East Fire Station. This link includes all considered locations, which was further narrowed and linked above.
Over the past several years, the City has been assessing its aging public buildings and determined that the Police, Fire, and Public Works buildings can no longer adequately support efficient delivery of City services to our residents.
Based on resident input and independent analysis, the City is moving forward with a plan, called Building Forward, that will invest $105 million to modernize its core service operations.
As part of the plan, the City will acquire land outside of downtown Golden Valley where it will build a new Public Works building. The City will then build a new Public Safety building at the existing Public Works site to serve as a new fire and police headquarters.
In addition to this plan, the City will be consolidating its two remote fire stations - Fire Stations 2 and 3 - into one fully staffed East Fire Station.
Fire Departments across the country are in transition. The three main reasons include challenges in:
recruiting and retaining non-career firefighters
achieving best practices for firefighter health and safety
accommodating modern firefighting equipment, training, and operations
Golden Valley is no different. In 2016, the Golden Valley Fire Department (GVFD) completed a study to identify what it needs to do to continue to provide the community with high-quality, fast, and efficient emergency services while being fiscally responsible with taxpayer funding. This was followed in 2020 by a study of all City facilities to determine future needs and opportunities.