The council bought land in the 300 block of A Street from Eldon and Karen Rossow, of Fort Dodge, for $85,000.

That money will come from the city’s share of revenue from the countywide emergency medical service tax. Monday’s purchase was the first major expenditure of any EMS tax money.

Construction of the station was part of the plan presented to voters before the March 2025 referendum in which the property tax levy for EMS was approved. That levy is 75 cents per $1,000 of taxable value.

The location was picked because it offers quick access to U.S. Highway 169 and the Karl King Viaduct, according to Fire Chief Matt Price.

“It gets you pretty good quick access to anywhere,” he told the council.

Having a firehouse there will reduce response times to the western side of Fort Dodge and rural areas of Webster County to which the Fire Department provides ambulance service. Price said the department is the ambulance service for the northern two-thirds of the county.

He said the department responded to 470 calls outside the city last year.

The new station will have three bays and will house a fire engine and two ambulances. Price said five to seven firefighter/paramedics will be on duty there.

A timeline for building the firehouse has not been released.

Councilmembers Kim Alstott, Jen Crimmins, Terry Moehnke, and Cameron Nelson voted to buy the property. Councilmembers Scott Davis and Megan Secor were absent. Councilman Todd McCubbin abstained because he is a real estate agent with Kesterson Realty, of Fort Dodge, which handled the transaction.