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Sandy Springs Fire Department seeks station rebuild, shift-schedule trial and drone/AED programs
Summary
Fire leadership proposed a $20.2 million debt placeholder for a complete rebuild of Station 1, an addition at Station 3, a six-month trial of a 48/96 shift schedule (cost about $175,000 first year) and capital requests for training, turnout gear and a drone program.
Fire Chief Andrew presented the department’s 2024 activity summary and several FY26 requests that would affect operations and capital planning. The fire department reported 12,175 total calls in 2024 — including 4,565 EMS responses and 248 fire calls — and said average citywide response time was 7 minutes, 7 seconds (February 2024 data).
Chief Andrew described capital and operational priorities: a proposed complete rebuild of Fire Station 1 and an addition to Station 3 (the manager earlier included a $20,200,000 debt placeholder in the proposed CIP), investments in turnout gear, ballistic/vest replacements, a training mezzanine roll-up door, and replacement apparatus lifecycle items. Chief Andrew also proposed a drone program (estimated $90,000 capital) to provide rapid aerial situational awareness for EMS and fire responses along congested corridors including I-285/400.
A substantive personnel proposal would pilot a 48/96 shift schedule (48 hours on, 96 off) for six months. Chief Andrew said a departmental survey showed 70.7% support among line personnel and the first-year cost to the city would be about $175,000. He said departments in other Georgia cities (Alpharetta, Johns Creek, Roswell) have moved to similar schedules and cited benefits such as more consecutive days off and reduced commuting costs for personnel who travel from distant counties.
Council asked whether replacing Station 1 would materially improve response times; Chief Andrew said a rebuilt Station 1 plus an additional engine in the future would improve coverage but the immediate rebuild alone would not change the current response-area metrics without additional apparatus. On Station 4 (a location currently in Atlanta that the city would want to relocate), staff said they have identified three candidate sites but have not reached an agreement; council discussed options including eminent domain and the timing implications for debt issuance and arbitrage rules. Chief Andrew said the city’s financial advisers recommend not initiating debt transactions until after re-rating and until late June; council would not vote to issue debt until the fall at the earliest.
