Palm Coast Opens Fire Station 26, Emphasizing: “This Station Isn’t Just a Building, It’s About People’s Lives”

The City of Palm Coast proudly celebrated the grand opening of Fire Station 26 on Memorial Day weekend, marking a major milestone in public safety, service expansion, and community investment.

Fire Station 26 is located at 72 Airport Commerce Way in Seminole Woods.

The ceremony was led by Interim Fire Chief Bradd Clark, who served as Master of Ceremonies. Nine-year-old Laurel Duffy delivered a beautiful performance of the National Anthem, and Fire Department Chaplain Chris Cottle offered the Invocation. Mayor Mike Norris and all City Council Members were in attendance to commemorate the opening of the City’s newest fire station.

The large red bay doors opened as City and Fire leaders took part in a longstanding tradition at the opening of a fire station: a hose uncoupling, performed in lieu of a ribbon cutting.

Fire Chief and Interim Deputy City Manager Kyle Berryhill shared key insights about the importance of the new station and its connection to the community. Palm Coast ranks in the 90th percentile for how much residents value their fire department. Station 26 alone is expected to run more than 3,000 calls per year, roughly the same number as the entire department handled in 2005, the year Chief Berryhill joined PCFD.

Fire Station 26 houses nine firefighters, with three crews covering three shifts. The Palm Coast Fire Department currently includes 74 career firefighter positions and several volunteer firefighters.

Chief Berryhill delivered a deeply personal message about the department’s values, mission, and future, emphasizing that Fire Station 26 was designed to enhance emergency response times and improve the physical and mental wellness of firefighters. He reflected on the department’s core values, “Family, Integrity, and Loyalty,” and reminded attendees while firefighters train for major emergencies, their everyday work is profoundly personal to the families they serve.

He noted if Station 26 had existed during his own father’s cardiac emergency, it would have been the responding station. “It would not have changed the outcome for my dad,” he said. “But someday, because this station exists, it will be different for someone else’s dad.”

Chief Berryhill also outlined how the station will expand service coverage for growing areas of Palm Coast. More than 1,000 residential properties will now be within five driving miles of Fire Station 26, improving emergency response capabilities and potentially lowering insurance costs for homeowners in the area.

He concluded with gratitude to the community, city leadership, firefighters past and present, and the partners who helped bring the project to life:

“This station is not just a building. It is time. It is capability. It is trained professionals arriving faster with the equipment, training, compassion, and determination to help people on the worst days of their lives… Thank you all for being here today to celebrate this important milestone in the history of the Palm Coast Fire Department and the City of Palm Coast. We are grateful. We are proud. And we are excited for the future of Fire Station 26.”

During the ceremony, Vice Mayor Theresa Pontieri, as the wife of a firefighter, highlighted the human side of station life and why the community’s investment matters.

“When they have little off time, when they're not responding to 27 calls a shift, they may get some time to relax in recliners in the common rooms, play a video game or two when the tones aren’t dropping. When they have those tough conversations that they don’t carry home to their family and friends, they have them in those walls. This is a house. This is their home,” Vice Mayor Pontieri said. “And it’s important to me that the community recognizes how much of a role you play in giving them this. It’s important. It matters.”

When “tones drop” in a fire station, it signals an emergency dispatch, requiring personnel to respond immediately.

Fire Station 26 was designed by Schenkel Shultz. Architect Zoran Lozanovski, who led the design, reflected on the unique purpose and spirit of the building:

“One example that stuck with me during the process, even something as small as receiving a charge from the fire department during the layout of the interior of the building to ensure as much mingling of the staff as possible. So, when somebody is going through a difficult day or challenging day, or maybe had a different call in the middle of the night, someone else, whether it’s a supervisor, or another brother, or another firefighter, can see and say, ‘Hey, how are you doing? Let’s talk. Let’s encourage each other.’ They wanted the building not just to be a building where people come together, but a building that fosters caring for one another, supporting one another in the everyday line of work.”

Lozanovski also expressed gratitude for the partnership: “Thank you for entrusting us with this vision, thank you for giving us the opportunity to serve you this way. We hope this facility will be of great service for many, many years.”

Fire Station 26 was made possible through a combination of approximately $5 million in State funding and impact fee investments. Construction was completed by Wharton-Smith, with General Superintendent Tim Moore overseeing the project.

Fire Station 26 now officially joins the Palm Coast Fire Department’s mission of delivering the best service to our community every time. The last time Palm Coast opened a fire station was Fire Station 25 in 2009.

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