Fire Department Reopening Station At 13th and Layton

Shuttered Engine 17 Fire Station. Photo by Jeramey Jannene.

Milwaukee will have a new fire station in 2024.

Fire Chief Aaron Lipski announced late Friday afternoon that he intends to reopen Engine 17 at 4653 S. 13th St. The announcement comes as the city debates its 2024 budget.

Under the proposed city budget, the budget for the Milwaukee Fire Department (MFD),  would increase by $14.4 million to $146 million, an 11% increase. The daily staffing level in the department would increase from 192 to 198.

“Chief Aaron Lipski wishes to extend his sincere gratitude to Mayor Cavalier Johnson, Common Council President José G. Pérez, and Finance and Personnel Chairwoman Marina Dimitrijevic for navigating the difficult financial waters from which the City of Milwaukee will now hopefully begin to emerge,” said the fire department in a statement.

In addition, an advanced life support medical unit, the city’s 13th, will be added at Fire Station 36, 4060 N. 27th St. “It will augment Paramedic Unit 5 in responding to the busiest response areas in the City of Milwaukee and the State of Wisconsin,” said a statement by the MFD.

During the department’s budget hearing on Oct. 11, Lipski said he was considering three different engines to be reactivated. The now-selected S. 13th Street and W. Layton Avenue firehouse (shuttered in 2021) was under consideration as well as Engine 6 (1693 N. Franklin Pl., closed 2017) and Engine 31 (2400 S. 8th St., closed 2018). Seven stations were closed in as many years as the city saw its costs continue to rise and revenue stagnate.

Lipski said the department analyzed geographic distribution, call locations, response times and building availability in making its decision.

For additional details on the fire department’s proposed budget and operational changes, see our Friday coverage.