Riviera Beach Fire Station 89 on North Military Trail has officially relocated 1.9 miles to Riviera Beach Station 88 on W. Blue Heron Boulevard.

According to the fire department, the move marks the end of a 30-year lease with the West Palm Beach Veterans Affairs Medical Center, which owns the Station 89 site. They add that Station 89 served the community for 25 years and closed last week.

The West Palm Beach VA Health System plans to repurpose the property to expand mental health services for veterans. Fire officials say it was an extensive search for the VA and no other suitable properties were found in the area.

Fire Chief John Curd tells WPTV reporter Zitlali Solache that Station 88 was originally built to accommodate twice the number of firefighters, ambulances, fire trucks and equipment – knowing full well that the lease with the VA could expire.

Chief Curd assures that the department will have quick response times thanks to the Predictive Traffic Signal feature of the emergency vehicles, a siren signal system that allows an emergency vehicle to override normal traffic lights using radio and cellular systems.

This is a developing story. Check back with WPTV News for updates.

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