Wheeling’s new fire station already seeing action
Since moving in about a month ago, the firefighters manning Wheeling’s new station at 175 McHenry Road have seen plenty of action.
Perhaps most significantly, they were part of the team that knocked down a May 22 blaze on the deck of a mobile home on Surrey Road that left one person injured. Assisted by a team from nearby Prospect Heights, firefighters got to the house less than five minutes after the 911 call and kept flames from spreading indoors.
The new station is about a mile south of where the fire erupted. The station it replaced was further south at Dundee Road and Community Boulevard and would’ve required more time for crews to get to the scene — and the delay could’ve had disastrous results.
“I think if that fire went a few more minutes, it would’ve gotten into the house,” Fire Chief Scott Salela said. “They could’ve lost the whole trailer.”
Designated Station No. 42, the firehouse opened in late April following a roughly yearlong construction that cost about $7.7 million and, according to officials, came in under budget. It’s one of three fire stations in Wheeling.
One fire engine and one ambulance are based at the station, which is staffed around the clock. In addition to bays for those vehicles and other equipment, the station has sleeping quarters for firefighters, a kitchen, a fitness room and other amenities.
“Everybody has their own bed and cubicle,” Salela said of the new digs. “There’s plenty of room for working out, and showers. It’s very nice.”
Its predecessor, also dubbed Station No. 42, occupied two rooms in Wheeling’s police station and wasn’t nearly as well-appointed.
The old station also was east of the railroad tracks that are part of the North Central Service commuter line. The demand for public safety service on the west side of those tracks has grown, in part because of assisted living facilities and shopping centers operating on that side of town, Salela said.
Of the 450 calls the department responded to during Station No. 42’s first month of operations, 202 were for the new station, or 45%.
“It’s a busier area,” Salela said.
The new station’s architectural elements, facade materials and colors resemble those of Station No. 23 at 780 S. Wheeling Road, which opened in 2021. The same architectural firm — 845 Design Group of La Grange — worked on both projects, as did general contractor W.B. Olson Inc of Northbrook.
But Station No. 23 is losing that designation and becoming Station No. 43. Likewise, Wheeling's Station No. 24 at 499 S. Milwaukee Ave. is becoming Station No. 44.
The designations are changing because of the department’s move to the Northwest Central Dispatch System in January 2025.
Salela, who took over the department in February, thanked former Chief Mike McGreal, Deputy Chief Steve Mella and village officials for bringing the new station to life.
“I’m very appreciative (of) all their hard work,” Salela said. “It’s a beautiful station.”
As for the old Station No. 42 space in the police station, it will be repurposed by the police department.
“(That) has been the long-standing plan since the PD’s renovation over ten years ago,” Village Manager Jon Sfondilis said in an email.