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In 1959, the Great Falls Volunteer Fire Department acquired land at 9916 Georgetown Pike. In 1961, the current fire station building was completed. The facility was originally constructed only to house emergency apparatus. At that time, volunteers from Great Falls responded from their homes and businesses. When a call came in, volunteers drove to the station, got their gear on, jumped on the rig and raced off. In 1966, a full time staff was hired and sleeping and living quarters were added to the building. Eventually, a kitchen, women’s dormitory, day room and offices were squeezed into the building. Today, the station is home to 7 men and women from the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department who staff the station 24 hours per day.
 In 2001, it was apparent that the station was becoming increasingly cramped, antiquated and expensive to maintain. The Great Falls VFD hired architectural and engineering firms with the goal of designing and building a new, larger facility. After extensive input from the volunteers, career staff, and members of the community, the architects designed a building that met the operational needs of the department and fit in with the semi-rural flavor of Great Falls. The leadership of the department began a fundraising campaign to raise money to construct the new station. After years of trying, it became apparent that the department was not going to be able to raise the necessary funds, as costs increased year after year. In 2005, the department began working on an agreement with the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors whereby the VFD would donate our land to Fairfax County and the county would build a new facility with space for volunteer meeting rooms, offices and other facilities.
In March 2007, this agreement was ratified by both parties, with a ‘not to exceed’ cost of $12 million. In November 2007, Fairfax County voters overwhelmingly supported a referendum that authorized the selling of bonds for the new station and other emergency facilities in the county. Fairfax County hired an architect to design the station, which was largely based on the earlier design commissioned by the volunteers. Demolition of the old station and construction of the new is expected to begin by the summer of 2009.
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