Costa Mesa officially re-opened Fire Station No. 1 with an emotion-packed ribbon-cutting ceremony on Saturday Sept. 29 that was well attended by both high-ranking dignitaries, elected city leaders, city staff and several hundred members of the general public.

Attending the event was Congressman Dana Rohrabacher and State Sen. John Moorlach, both of whom gave presentations to the city, along with a representative from Assembly Member Matt Harper’s office.

The event began with comments from City Manager Tom Hatch along with Costa Mesa Mayor Sandy Genis, Mayor Pro-Tem Allan Mansoor, Council Members Katrina Foley, Jim Righeimer and John Stephens.

“This was a phenomenal event for the entire community,” Fire Chief Dan Stefano said. “Our fire family is grateful and honored to have this extraordinary resource for our residents and firefighters. We look forward to having this serve as our flagship fire station for decades to come.”

Also speaking at the event was Public Services Director Raja Sethuraman, who credited his team and others for building the new station at 1570 Adams Ave., which is an 11,740-square-foot facility that comes equipped with the latest in fire services technology and daily amenities.

The new facility replaces the original Station 1 that was built in 1961.

This new building is a $10 million city investment that came in $350,000 under budget and is LEED Gold Certified. It has a new public lobby, three fire offices, rooms for laundry, communications, exercise and training. There is also is a kitchen and dining room and 10 bedrooms and five restrooms. This is the first fire station built in Costa Mesa since Station No. 6 was built over 25 years ago in 1993.

Saturday’s festivities also included a color guard presentation, plaque unveiling and a flag raising as well as opportunities for the public to take guided tours of the station. Children, some dressed as firefighters, climbed on fire equipment and trucks and the Maltese Cross was also unveiled. The Maltese Cross dates backs hundreds of years.  It is a symbol of protection and means that a firefighter is willing to lay down his/her life and works in courage.