First responders in Foley should have a secure location to ride out hurricanes and other disasters by the 2027 storm season following a City Council vote Monday, Oct. 6.

The council approved a plan to seek bids to construct a 10,000-square-foot safe room capable of housing up to 200 people. The building will be engineered to withstand winds up to 200 miles an hour and will include a 400-kilowatt generator that can operate on natural gas or diesel fuel. Kitchen facilities and other necessities will be provided to support personnel during emergencies.

Mike Thompson, Foley city administrator, said officials hope to select a contractor in November, with construction mobilization planned for early to mid-January. Thompson estimated a 14- to 16-month build time.

“I think the build time on the project is 14 to 16 months, which means we should have a completed safe room for the ‘27 hurricane season,” he said.

While the safe room is primarily intended as a storm shelter for first responders, Thompson said it will serve other functions during the rest of the year.

“This facility will help us during storms, but for the rest of the year, we're going to be able to use it for our first responders, for training exercises and training classes,” he said. “So we're excited about this.”

The project will be largely funded by a Federal Emergency Management Agency grant, part of ongoing efforts with FEMA that began after Hurricane Sally struck the Alabama Gulf Coast in 2020.

The safe room will be built on city-owned property on North Poplar Street, situated north of the Public Works campus under construction and south of East Berry Avenue.