The City of Foley has taken a major step toward strengthening emergency preparedness with the groundbreaking of a new Safe Room designed to house first responders during hurricanes and other major events.
City officials broke ground on the facility Monday, Feb. 9. Construction is scheduled to begin next week, with the building expected to be ready for use by the 2027 hurricane season.
Mayor Ralph Hellmich said the Safe Room will benefit not only Foley, but emergency agencies across the region.
“It’s a very well-designed building rated to 200 miles an hour,” Hellmich said. “Up to 200 people can be in here. That’s responders, state troopers, deputy sheriffs, first responders from some of our smaller communities and our city workers. That way we can quickly respond.”
When not in use during emergencies, the facility will serve multiple purposes. The center will include a 400-kilowatt generator capable of running on either natural gas or diesel fuel, along with kitchen facilities and other amenities needed to house personnel during extended operations.
“It’s not just a safe room during a hurricane. It will also be multi-purpose,” Hellmich said. “We can use it for training our first responders and other needs of our community. This building is going to make us all very proud.”
Hellmich said planning for the safe room has been underway for several years, following the impact of Hurricane Sally in 2020.
“We suffered a catastrophe in 2020 with Hurricane Sally. It demonstrated the need for our city and our community to have a safe room,” he said. “Everybody said Sally wasn’t supposed to be that bad. Those were famous last words. Today we’re breaking ground on a safe room that will help us prepare for the future.”
The project is being funded primarily through a Federal Emergency Management Agency grant.
Buford King, Foley director of public projects, infrastructure and development, said construction is expected to take 14 to 16 months. The single-story facility will be nearly 10,000 square feet.
“It has structural steel supporting a precast concrete roof with concrete topping,” King said. “It will be quite the fortress.”
Companies working with the city on the project include Adams Stewart Architects; Jade Engineering (civil engineer); Smith Mechanical (plumbing and HVAC); Stewart Engineering and Construction (electrical); structural engineer Stephen Horne; and Encompass 360.
Hellmich also thanked local, state and federal officials for their support. Baldwin County assisted the city through a property exchange, providing the site on North Poplar Avenue where the Safe Room will be constructed.
In addition to serving as a shelter for first responders, the facility can function as a command post if other city buildings are damaged and will be used year-round for training, meetings and emergency coordination.