City Buying Land for New Fire Station in Northwest Lakeland

A new fire station for northwest Lakeland is finally in the works after years of requests from residents and Commissioner Bill Read.

The City Commission will vote Monday on a contract to buy a 2.3-acre piece of land on the southwest corner of Sleepy Hill Road and Mall Hill Drive. The proposed eighth fire station will be 8,500 square feet and will serve the area north of I-4 to the current city boundary.

The station is anticipated to handle more than 3,600 emergency incidents per year, with an initial staff of six employees and the capacity for three more in the future, according to the memo prepared by city staff.

The station will operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and will be built to withstand hurricane-force winds. It will house a fire engine, a fire rescue truck and have a third bay available for a reserve fire engine.

The purchase price is listed as $1.35 million and the seller is listed at AM Cassell 2 LLC. The registered agent for that corporation is Keishun Cassell, whose office is on Edgewood Drive. Cassell operates an Allstate Insurance agency at the same address.

The site of the proposed Lakeland Fire Station 8 is at the corner of Mall Hill Drive and Sleepy Hill Road.

The agenda states that city staff have already conducted “extensive due diligence to ensure the buildability of the property” and title work and environmental investigations have been completed, indicating no problems.

In addition, the Fire Department’s plans for the property have gone through the city’s development review process to rule out potential impediments to the project. The closing for the property is scheduled for June 3.