A $4.6 million contract to construct the city’s eighth fire station will come before the Ocala City Council for a final vote next week.
The agreement with Dinkins Construction, LLC, will be presented to the council during its regular meeting on Tuesday, March 18.
The contract calls for the design and construction of a 10,130-square-foot, three-bay fire station that would house seven personnel.
The new fire station is planned for a 7.8-acre parcel located approximately 300 feet south of the intersection of U.S. Highway 27 and NW 45th Terrace.
In January 2024, city council members unanimously approved an agreement between the city (buyer) and Armstrong Land, LLC (seller) to purchase the 7.8-acre parcel for $612,000.
In August 2024, the city advertised a request for proposals for the design and construction of the station, which will feature a 10,000-gallon fuel island.
In September 2024, that parcel was rezoned and its future land use was changed by the Ocala City Council.
Later that month, the city received three qualified and responsive proposals. One was from Dinkins, which is based in Ocala, while the other two were from Oelrich Construction, Inc., which is based in Jonesville, Florida, and D.E. Scorpio Corporation, which is based in Gainesville.
The contract specifies that the “guaranteed maximum price” for the fire station is $4,213,901, with a 10% contingency of $421,390.10, bringing the total cost to $4,635,292.
An offer sheet shows that approximately $195,400 will be spent on the design and pre-construction costs, while $3,313,615 will be spent on construction costs.
According to the city, construction of the new fire station is expected to be complete by August 2026.
Multiple parcels were analyzed for the new fire station, and city staff felt that the 7.8-acre site was best suited for it. The city intends to construct the station on the northern portion of the parcel, since this 3.6-acre area has been deemed “suitable for development.”
According to city staff, the new station is expected to improve response times and better serve businesses and residences located in the “rapidly developing NW 44th Avenue (area) of the city.”
Specifically, Fire Station 8 will serve the Heath Preserve development to the south, as well as commercial properties to the east, properties to the north, properties located further to the east on the other side of Interstate 75, and properties developing off of NW 44th Avenue.
The Ocala City Council regularly meets on the first and third Tuesday of each month at 4 p.m. at Ocala City Hall (110 SE Watula Avenue).