SPANISH FORT — The City of Spanish Fort broke ground on construction of the Spanish Fort Fire Department's new station on Friday.

The project, which has been in development for a decade, finally sees the light of day in a new 18,000-square-foot station that includes new up-to-date overnight facilities, living quarters and more.

One of the biggest reasons a new fire station is needed is due to the department's increase in staff to keep up with the growth of Baldwin County.

"The biggest thing is our staff has grown," Spanish Fort Fire Chief Roger Few said. "We have full-time staff that stay at the fire station, and the original building was not built with a clear capacity, so they're sleeping in what would have been the day room initially, and now they move into part of the safe room, but, basically, we're out of room with that building. That building staff deserves to have more space."

The Spanish Fort Fire Department currently has 27 full-time firefighters and around 20 volunteers. They are one of the only fire stations in Baldwin County to have full-time, paid positions, Few said.

In addition to the new facility, Few said a new training facility is also in the works with hopes it will pick up steam in the near future. As for the original fire station they are using, the plan is to turn it into a public works facility, which would be a first for the city.

"Everybody is excited about having a new facility," Few said. "I think it's going to be great for the organization as a whole."