Excerpts from  the Journal-Topics.com:

A rendering of the proposed new Station 23 in Wheeling. Courtesy of the Village of Wheeling.

Plans to knock down and reconstruct Fire Station 23 in Wheeling kicked off Monday (Feb. 3) when village trustees approved site plans and a special use permit.

The current fire station at 780 Wheeling Rd. is 42 years old and in need of extensive repairs and upgrades in order to continue meeting the community’s needs. Wheeling’s fire department serves up to 75,000 local residents in a 10 sq. mi. area.

Deputy Fire Chief Michael McGreal said the station was built for only one rig. Due to high estimates for renovation work, village staff decided a total reconstruction project would be the best way to update the station.

When complete, the new station is expected to be a 11,203 sq. ft. building rendered in cement and situated on the north end of the village-owned property near Echo Lake just north of Hintz Roadz Road.  The design features stone veneer, siding, and accent panels made of fiber cement in shades of gray, white, brown, and red. The site plan also includes a seam roof, front canopy entry, parking lot on the south side of the property, and street-facing landscaping.

To construct the new station, trustees approved a special use permit to allow for a new fire station in the I-1 zoning district. Most fire stations are in business districts. When it was built in the 1970s, it did not require a special use permit.

In addition to site plan and special use approval, the village board approved requests to allow a variation from the required setback for the property along Wheeling Road from 35 feet to 30 feet and a variation of the permitted height from 30 feet to 33 feet.

After the new station is completed, the department plans to use the same design to update Station 42 on Dundee Road.

Tags: Deputy Fire Chief Michael McGreal, drawing of new fire station, new fire station for Wheeling, Wheeling Fire Department, Wheeling Fire Station 23, Wheeling to build new fire station