Designs for the new Footscray SES unit have been revealed.
The state government committed funding at the recent state budget to provide a more suitable home for the unit.
The $14 million new facility on Hampstead Road in Maidstone will have room for 90 volunteers, feature five motor bays, dedicated training rooms, communications and wellbeing rooms and modern office spaces.
The 5,000-square-metre site also holds strong local significance, having previously housed the Maribyrnong Migrant Hostel, which helped resettle thousands of displaced people after World War II.
Footscray is one of the busiest units in Melbourne’s west, having led a massive response to the 2022 floods.
It responds to more than 500 requests for help each year.
Construction is set to begin once project approvals are in place later this year.
Emergency Services Minister Vicki Ward said Footscray SES’s current home is not up to scratch for the demand they’re under.
“We’re making sure they have room to grow and support the safety of their community,” she said.
Footscray MP Katie Hall said everyone saw how vital a well-resourced SES was during the floods.”
Unit controller Mike Bagnall has previously told Star Weekly that the funding was a pleasant surprise.
“People have lobbied for many years,” he said.
“The Footscray unit has had a temporary unit within the Maribyrnong city council works depot and that’s been the case for about 11 years now. It’s not tenable.”
The unit is hoping to grow from 50 members to 70 with the the new facility.
