The fire station that served as the home base for the Lathrop Manteca District for decades has finally gotten a facelift.

The $4 million upgrade represented not just a much-needed overhaul of the aging facility, but also represented an investment into the agency’s historic roots – giving residents on the east side of I-5 a building that they can be proud of while at same time providing functionality that didn’t exist before.

In addition to constructing separate bunk space to allow for gender diversity among the rank-and-fire personnel, the overhaul included exterior building work and the removal of the expansive grass area that was in front of the building – replacing it with drought-tolerant landscaping, riverbed, bark, and several trees in an attempt to curtail water usage for landscaping.

A new alerting system was also installed, and a “clean area” where firefighter gear is stored so that it won’t be contaminated was also constructed. The building also now has a diesel exhaust removal system that will allow for engines to run without exhaust posing a risk to the living quarters.

While the completion of the work took slightly longer than expected thanks to supply-chain disruptions and the scarcity of some of the supplies needed, plans are still in the works to invite the public to a reopening ceremony to allow for people to get a closer look at the new building – which has the same brick exterior as Station 35, which now houses the district’s administrative offices that used to be on J Street.

Funding for the work came from fire facilities fees – levied against new construction and development to help pay for the services that are impacted by growth – as well as general fund money and other revenue sources.

The design of the building was completed by Eric Wohle of LDA Partners while Diede Construction completed the work and Creative Outdoor Environments installed the drought-resistant landscaping.