SAN MARCOS (KGTV) — San Marcos is getting a new fire station, fully funded by Measure Q, the 1-cent sales tax approved by voters in November 2024.
About $25 million in tax revenue is funding Fire Station 5, which will be located at the corner of North Las Posas Road and Armorlite Drive. An additional $1.2 million in state funding is also helping cover the cost.
The station will be staffed and equipped with a new fire engine and ambulance. It is meant to strengthen public safety and support the city's long-term public safety needs.
City leaders held a groundbreaking ceremony for the new station this week.
San Marcos has seen major fires in recent decades, and parts of the area are classified as a high fire hazard severity zone.
"We have a wildland area just to the north of us. All of our units are at risk," San Marcos Fire Department Division Chief Dean White said.
Fire Station 5 will expand emergency services and improve response times in the area.
"We're capable of structure fires, medical responses, wildland fires, and the units and the personnel that will be at Fire Station 5 will be more than qualified to handle all those incidents," White said.
I reached out to Lindsey Smith, the president of San Elijo Hills Fire Safe Council. She focuses on fire-safety awareness for homes in San Marcos.
"The fire department is both responding to incidents as they happen, but also the prevention side as well, and that's really important for our communities as we struggle to get insurance," Smith said.
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