Minutes make the difference in emergency response.
That was the refrain at the Pilot Point Fire Station No. 3 Grand Opening Ceremony.
“Standing here, looking at this incredible facility, it’s easy to see the brick, mortar and steel, but what you’re really looking at is a promise that we’ve kept to our citizens,” Pilot Point Fire Chief Heath Hudson said. “For a long time, we’ve watched our community grow, especially here in the southeast with new homes in Mobberly Farms and Creekview. We knew that our responsibility to protect you had to grow. Today, that responsibility has a new home.”
He touched on how having the facility on FM 1385 makes a tangible difference for response in that corridor.
“This station, which we affectionately called the Farmhouse, is a game changer,” he said. “By placing our resources right here on FM 1385 we are drastically cutting down response times. In our profession, seconds don’t just count. They mean everything.”
Hudson also mentioned that the new facility is more than just a fire- house, with the Pilot Point Police Department also having offices and a presence in the building.
“Having our brothers and sisters from Pilot Point Police Department under the same roof strengthens our bond and ensures that when you call for help, you’re getting coordinated, elite teams,” Hudson said.
There are 15 new members of the department housed at Station No. 3, with a mixture of established Pilot Point Fire staff helping to keep the department culture consistent across the firehouses.
“I’m super proud of the facility and the guys we’ve hired, and we’re making an impact in this part of our community,” Assistant Chief Bryan Cox said before the ceremony.
The station has already made a difference.
“Before this station opened, it would take us 15 minutes to get out here on a 911 call, and now we can be on the scene in under four, typically,” Cox said. “It helps fill the gap in the middle, because both stations are responding to the middle, and it’s just something the city needed.”
Engineer Brad Bell is one of the seasoned Pilot Point Fire members who has now gotten to open a second new fire station.
“It’s a really nice facility; we did well,” he said. “… We did well on [who was hired], too. All the guys are great.”
Second to address the collection of community members, city staff, elected officials and representatives from neighboring cities and departments was Police Chief Angela Mathews.
“Your partnership, your willingness to share this space and your continued collaboration truly represent what public safety can look like,” she said. “Unified, supported and focused on serving our community together. Today is more than just opening up a building. This substation represents progress. It represents intentional growth.”
The department’s Criminal Investigation Division will work from the substation, and other officers can use the facility when they are patrolling in the area as well.
Both chiefs thanked their colleagues who came from communities including Aubrey, Tioga, Celina, Little Elm and Cross Roads.
Little Elm Fire Chief Paul Rust said he was happy to support the area department.
“You don’t build a fire station every day,” he said. “It’s definitely a special event for the community as well as the fire department.”
He added that Pilot Point turned out to support LEFD when it opened its fourth station in the Spiritas Ranch neighborhood.
The first responders were not the only people excited for the impact the station has already started to have.
Stacy Condon, who lives in Mobberly Farms and works at Methodist Celina Medical Center, said she sees the need from the personal and professional sides.
“Time is precious,” she said. She’s grateful that the new station can help EMS respond to and transport people from medical emergencies to the hospital where she works for care much faster than was possible before either were opened.
Her colleague, Methodist Celina EMS Liaison Jason Segal, also came to the celebration to connect with the department.
Segal’s father was a paramedic for about 42 years, and he has an extensive background as a paramedic himself.
“It’s a really unique opportunity to come in as the population is expanding and all the emergency services are expanding as well to … make maybe a little bit of an impact, maybe a little bit of a difference for the community,” he said.
His goal is to work with local departments to help attune their processes with the hospital’s to help make the transport process as smooth as possible.
Kirsten Peoples, who also lives in Mobberly Farms, said she was grateful to see the station open.
“Just the amount of time that it takes to get from Pilot Point to out here in Mobberly Farms is, I feel, a tremendous amount of time in the event of an emergency,” she said. “And so, just having a local, very close fire station and police station is amazing.”
As the area continues to grow along FM 1385, the need for quick response is great.
Aubrey Mayor Chris Rich and his family were present to celebrate alongside Rich’s son, Tanner Calvert, who serves on the Pilot Point Fire Department.
As a fire parent and as a mayor, he sees the need for strong police and fire presence along the state road.
“FM 1385 severely needs widening,” he said. “In the interim, we’ll just cover it.”
