ALAMO -- City leaders hope to break ground soon on a fire substation across from City Hall they say will provide better service to the north side of town.

The $787,000 station is set to go up as the growing city considers a switch to 24/7 fire service.

Construction is expected to begin within a month on property adjacent to the Police Department near City Hall, south of Expressway 83 on Tower Road.

Currently, the city's only fire station is located south of Business 83 on Ninth Street.

"We're going to be able to cover a lot more area a lot faster," City Manager Luciano Ozuna said.

The city also plans to consider improving firefighters' salaries so they would be more competitive with those of other cities. Ozuna said the city has had a problem with turnover among firefighters.

The starting annual salary for Alamo firefighters is $21,500, Ozuna said. Some area cities offer starting yearly salaries more than $6,000 higher than that. Ozuna didn't yet know how much of a bump Alamo's salaries might get.

The city has nine paid firefighters and about 16 volunteers.

As planned, the new station will feature a training room, space for four fire trucks, offices and dormitories.

Fire Chief Rolando Espinoza said he and his staff have been trying to land a new station for at least five years. The additional location will allow firefighters to respond more quickly to incidents on the Expressway and avoid fire response vehicles being blocked by trains on Business 83, Espinoza said.

The changes likely would mean at least a total of three firefighters would work around the clock at both stations.

"We'll be sure of a response - a quick response," the fire chief said.
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Ryan Holeywell covers PSJA, the Mid-Valley and general assignments for The Monitor. He can be reached at (956) 683-4446.