Plans for a new Fire Station 2, or the North Station, are underway after a vote by Oak Park’s village board at a special meeting on July 28.
The existing station, 212 Augusta, dates back to the early 1900s and once housed a horse stable at the back of the building.
The village hired Cordogan Clark, an architecture and planning firm, to conduct a space-needs analysis and conceptual planning study of the aged fire station over a year ago as part of the 2026 capital improvement budget. The study found that the current building does not provide sufficient space for the staff or equipment necessary to operate up to current professional standards.
The analysis identified three key criteria for the station which are the addition of an Advance Life Support Ambulance crew, overall safety improvements for the staff and providing enhancements to help recruit and retain new staff which is a struggle seen around Illinois.
Based on expected occupancy and best practices, they found that the building should be about 6,500 square feet while the existing building is only about 3,500 square feet.
The current two-story building with a partial basement was originally built in 1917 when the department still used horse-carts, so the bay sizes are not adequate for modern-day fire engines to easily move in and out of especially when moving quickly.
“There used to be a stable for horses in back of the property,” said Nathan Melotte, managing director of Cordogan Clark. “This building was designed for a 1900s fire department, so very different needs have evolved over the life of the building.”
There are also health concerns presented with the living space on the second floor being located above the apparatus bay with the possibility of carcinogens being transferred. The building does not have enough room for a standard decontamination flow for firefighters returning from calls adding to health risks for the staff.
From these findings, three design options for new buildings were presented to the village board. The trustees all leaned towards the third option, a two-story building that would be located at a different site. It was agreed that a new building on the same plot of land would not be the best course of action.
Option 3 preliminary design from Cordogan Clark presentation on space needs of Fire Station 2 shown at Oak Park’s village meeting on July 28, 2026. Credit: Cordogan Clark and Village of Oak Park 
Option 3 preliminary design from Cordogan Clark presentation on space needs of Fire Station 2 shown at Oak Park’s village meeting on July 28, 2026. Credit: Cordogan Clark and Village of Oak Park
“I think option three gives the most flexibility for a growing fire department, but also just giving some more flexibility when it comes to room, space concerns, and just making sure that we’re not putting ourselves in a similar situation in the near future and rather building something out that grows with this fire department and lasts for a longer period of time,” said Trustee Chibuike Enyia at the meeting.
The board’s recommendation of option three will now go before the board’s finance committee to review and discuss, likely at a meeting in August according to Chief Financial Officer Kevin Bueso.
The total cost estimate for option three is $12.7 million, but there are many variables that could change once a piece of property is identified and purchased and more concrete design plans are created.
The village board voted on a long-term financial framework for structuring debt on major capital improvement projects over the next 30 years at its meeting on July 21, however, the new fire station was not accounted for in these plans. Under the current financial projections, there is no additional debt capacity until about 2032.
Bueso outlined a few possible options to explore with this project, the main consideration being whether this project should be included in the next five years or after.
If the village wants to proceed before there is more capacity for funding, options include using untouched reserves or moving other projects currently outlined to make room. Bueso said in terms of “best practice,” another option would be to look at ways to reduce costs and finance through surpluses.
“If we can count on surpluses year over year, we can get authorization or guidance from the board to move those funds, those surpluses, to the capital fund to fund these specific projects,” said Bueso.
Trustee James Taglia shared his opinion that the village should be looking now for a site as it’s “the most inexpensive part of what we’re looking at,” and finding available, adequate land can be difficult.
“We have to maybe look at shifting things potentially but also looking for the future and options of land don’t come along very often, so I think that we should be actively looking with our economic vitality people for property and secure that now,” said Taglia.
