By July, the Whiteford Volunteer Fire Company plans to break ground on a new, larger firehouse at the intersection of Jones and Whiteford roads. The new station will accommodate more volunteers, larger events and allow for easier apparatus access.

Proposed plans show that the new station will be 25,320 square feet — roughly 10,000 square feet larger than the company’s current firehouse on Pylesville Road.

Currently, the company has 70 volunteer fire and EMS personnel that serve a population of about 6,500 across 33 square miles. Their facility also hosts a variety of events ranging from scout meetings to North Harford cheerleading’s annual car wash.

The building chairman and treasurer for the Whiteford Volunteer Fire Company, Chuck Mohr, said the new facility will allow the company to better serve the community and its volunteers.

“We will be able to hold about 120 people in the hall at the new firehouse whereas at our current space, we can hold about half of that,” Mohr said. “With the new space, we can have two trainings going on at one time or we can have a training for the fire guys on one side and a community association meeting on the other side.”

With the new facility, the company will gain an additional drive-through engine bay — increasing the number of easy access bays from four, to five. The additional bay will allow the company quicker access to more apparatuses, which will assist in achieving faster response times.

Mohr explained that if the plans for the new building do not run into any complications, he expects crews to break ground on the new facility as early as late July.

As part of the county’s development process, the plans for the new Whiteford Volunteer Fire station are set to go before the county’s Development Advisory Committee on Nov. 20 at 9 a.m. in the first-floor conference room of 220 S. Main St., Bel Air.

At the meeting, numerous local and state officials will give their input on aspects of the plans such as traffic impact, wastewater management and environmental protection. Residents will have the opportunity to provide their input on the plans during public comment.

Have a news tip? Contact Matt Hubbard at mhubbard@baltsun.com, 443-651-0101 or @mthubb on X.