Tampa Fire Rescue and city leaders broke ground this week on Fire Station 24, a $23.8 million facility in North Tampa meant to relieve one of the busiest fire stations in the country after more than four years of delays. The 17,000-square-foot station will include four apparatus bays, a training tower, administrative space and living quarters, and it's designed to be fully ADA-accessible.
The groundbreaking came out of a press conference with Tampa Fire Rescue and city leaders, as reported by FOX 13 Tampa Bay. The station is being built on a city-owned 3.05-acre parcel at 4902 East Whiteway Drive, just south of the Greco Softball Complex, according to the City of Tampa. Tampa City Councilman Luis Viera has advocated for the project for years, and he said Station 13, which currently covers the Busch Gardens and Fowler Avenue area, has been taking roughly one in seven calls citywide.
A Busy Station Finally Gets Backup
A Busy Station Finally Gets Backup Station 13 ranked as the 54th busiest fire station in the United States and has been one of Tampa's busiest since around 2020, according to city leaders, even as it was just one of 23 fire stations serving the city at the time. North Tampa has seen a surge in emergency calls in recent years, and officials say Station 24 will finally give responders room to breathe.
The path to this groundbreaking wasn't smooth. Project planning began back in 2022, and regular progress reports began in 2024, according to Tampa Bay Business Watch. That oversight preceded the $17.4 million guaranteed maximum price construction agreement the City Council approved in July with J. Kokolakis Contracting, anchoring the total project budget at $23.8 million.
Built Above the Flood Line After Milton
Fire Station 24 is designed to withstand future severe weather and sits above the 100-year flood plain, a decision shaped by recent history. North Tampa was hit by catastrophic flooding during Hurricane Milton in October 2024, and according to No To Tampa Fire Station 24, the storm forced an emergency boat evacuation of 135 senior citizens near Lake Fowler. That flooding underscored the urgency of placing the new station on higher ground, the group notes.
The design-build team includes lead architect Architects Design Group, local firm HAA, general contractor J. Kokolakis Contracting, and owner's representative Colliers Project Leaders, per the City of Tampa. Federal funding is anticipated for Fire Station 24, the city says.
Neighborhood Pushback Over Tree Canopy
Not everyone in Terrace Park has welcomed the project without objection. Tampa's Variance Review Board voted 5-1 in April in Case VRB-26-45 to reduce required tree retention on the Whiteway Drive parcel from 50% to just 3%, according to No To Tampa Fire Station 24, allowing up to 97% of the lot's mature protected trees to be cleared despite grassroots neighborhood opposition. Residents have raised concerns about placing a fire station on a single-family residential street and about the resulting loss of tree canopy.
Fire Station 24 is one piece of Mayor Jane Castor's broader $116 million public safety infrastructure modernization plan for Tampa Fire Rescue, which also covers station upgrades and fleet replacements, Tampa Bay Business Watch reports. The new station is expected to open in fall 2027.
Regional Fire Coverage Is Also Shifting
The North Tampa buildout comes as fire coverage boundaries in the broader region are also changing. Hillsborough County plans to transfer emergency fire coverage for adjacent New Tampa neighborhoods from Tampa Fire Rescue to Pasco County Fire Rescue starting October 1, a move aimed at optimizing response times and managing regional costs, as Hoodline previously reported. Whether Station 24 and that regional handoff together ease the strain on North Hillsborough County's emergency response times remains to be seen as the fall 2027 target approaches.
