By Ron Skinner – February 2022

Plans for the future New Bridge Fire & Rescue Station are moving ahead. 

Spearheaded by Louisa County Mineral District Supervisor Duane Adams and Fire/EMS Chief Robert Dubé, the county Board of Supervisors approved an expansion of the project to include fire protection services in addition to the previous rescue/EMT building design.  The facility will now be constructed to house fire trucks along with ambulance units, bringing the plan back to the original 2016 concept for the much-needed facility.  The County supported the expanded design with an additional $600,000 budget supplement, bringing the total budget appropriation to $1.5 million for building construction and site work.

The non-profit Foundation for Lake Anna Emergency Services has now raised $190,000 from generous donations by the Lake Anna community.  $100,000 “seed funding” was granted to Louisa County in June 2021 to jump-start project construction.  Fundraising continues targeted to help with additional costs of building equipment, supplies, personnel gear, furniture, etc. for the new station, and to supplement and replace equipment to be donated by Mineral Volunteer Fire Department and Louisa County Fire/EMS.

A Groundbreaking Ceremony was held on December 27 at the future station site, 1856 New Bridge Road, with over 100 in attendance and an impressive display of Louisa Fire/EMS vehicles from several current stations as a backdrop.  Speakers included Adams and Dubé, plus County administrator Christian Goodwin, Foundation President Patrick Gallagher, and Vice President Jane Gallagher.  Other attendees included County supervisors Willie Gentry and Tommy Barlow, Parks/Recreation Director James Smith, Foundation Board Directors Brian Gilbreth, Mark Smith and Ron Skinner, Mineral VFD officers Lewis Keller and Lloyd Runnett, plus a large contingent of volunteers and career staff from several Louisa County Fire/EMS stations, and many local citizens and business owners from the lake area.

The ceremony was groundbreaking in respects beyond shovels in the dirt.  New Bridge Fire & Rescue will be the first new fire station built in Louisa County in 30 years and will be the first Fire/EMS facility to be constructed and owned by the County.  It will serve an estimated 2,800 homes and businesses in the Lake Anna area of Louisa County, of which 85% are more than 5 miles from the nearest current emergency facility. 

Construction is now scheduled to begin in the Spring, with completion expected by the end of Summer 2022.  Recent delays, driven by the COVID pandemic and its consequences, have resulted in push-back of the original construction timeline.  Unexpected issues that arose have included:  deferment of appropriations considering tax revenue concerns, bidding and securing of a qualified contractor, difficulties in procuring structural steel, price and supply of lumber. Initial engineering and soil test work have been completed and construction plans are ready to be finalized soon.

For more background on New Bridge Fire & Rescue Station and how to donate to the Foundation for Lake Anna Emergency Services, see the “Land Use/New Bridge Rescue” tab on the LACA website (LakeAnnaVirginia.org) or go to NewBridgeRescue.com.

ron.skinner@lakeannavirginia.org