Some Phoenix firefighters could spend up to two years working out of a hotel room. The council recently approved a contract for a temporary fire station at a Marriott Residence Inn.
A four-person engine crew is stationed at the extended stay hotel near 19th Avenue and Happy Valley Road. The firefighters cover an area more than 20 miles from downtown that includes commercial and residential developments.
The deal calls for the crew to work seven days a week, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., but the firefighters’ union, United Phoenix Firefighters, wants 24-hour coverage. In a Facebook post, the union called the response time to a recent house fire in the Norterra area “unacceptable and dangerous.”
A new station is being planned at Interstate 17 and Jomax Road, but a construction timeline is not yet known. The contract for the temporary station, operating out of a two-room studio, will last up to two years.
The firefighters began working out the two-room studio on January 8, 2018, and the council approved a retroactive authorization to enter into an agreement with the hotel on March 7, 2018.
