BROOKHAVEN, Ga. — In a 3-to-1 vote, Brookhaven City Council is moving forward with plans to build a fire station at Blackburn Park, despite opposition from some neighbors and park users.
DeKalb County will pay for, build and operate the fire station, which is expected to break ground in late 2027, city manager Christian Sigman said.
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He described the 1.35-acre site along Ashford Dunwoody Road at Johnson Ferry Road as the ideal location for a new fire station for better serving northern DeKalb County.
“It fills a giant hole in response time,” he said. “This is a gap in our response time from DeKalb fire, for EMS and fire calls in the northern part of the city.”
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Sigman said the city is working with neighbors to address their concerns about traffic, noise and impacts on the community and the park. Some are upset about the loss of trees on the site, including a large oak.
Sigman said the city plans to create landscaping buffers around the station and plant new trees. It’s also making efforts to minimize siren noise and lighting at night when conditions allow.
Richard Sraeel, who was walking his dog at the park Wednesday, said he thinks this is no place for a fire station and prefers the city find another suitable location nearby.
“I don’t think it’s a good idea, especially since there’s a lot of dog activity here,” he said. “A lot of little league games, sports games. So I think it’ll intrude on that.”
But Sigman said the site is on an old parking lot, and all of the park’s amenities will be intact.
“It’s an unused parking lot between two traffic lights, and you want the station right there on the main corridor,” he said. “It’s a part of the park that’s not being used. We’re not taking out any green space per se. It’s already paved. It’s already a parking lot.”
The city considered four other locations but determined this was the best site. The agreement between Brookhaven and DeKalb County includes a 50-year lease on the property with the county paying the city $1 a year.
“We view this as a huge benefit to the city, absolutely huge, because of the response time improvement for that part of the city,” Sigman said.
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