The Highland Village City Council at their regular meeting on Tuesday night received a presentation from Fire Chief Mike Thomson regarding a proposed regional fire training facility owned and maintained by the cities of Highland Village, Lewisville, The Colony and the town of Flower Mound.
The proposed 9,000 square-foot, $5 million facility would be located in Lewisville on Treatment Plant Road, six miles from the Highland Village fire station. The four cities would share the cost of construction and maintenance based on the size of each department.
“This approach has been successfully modeled between area cities and is the best use of taxpayer funds as the capital and operating costs are shared,” said Fire Chief Mike Thomson.
The facility would benefit Highland Village firefighters by providing increased access to basic and advanced skills training, according to Thomson. The four cities will work to develop an agreement for the facility and bring to Council for further discussion with the 2021 budget process.
Council members also received a status update regarding the proposed I-35E northbound entrance ramp from Highland Village Road. City Manager Michael Leavitt told council members that the project has been approved but no official timeline has been determined.
“20 years ago we made the request for this,” said Leavitt.
Also at the meeting, Parks Director Phil Lozano provided an update on the Kids Kastle Community Build Project. City staff is working with Play By Design, LLC on the logistics for the playground build. The community can sign up to volunteer and be part of the build at the SpeakUpHV.com website by selecting “Come Build with Us.” Sponsorships are requested for additional funding and food donations for the community build dates. Phase 1 will take place on March 23-26 and Phase 2 will take place March 31-April 5.
