For the first time in more than 50 years, the city of Binghamton will welcome a new fire station downtown.

The $8.45 million project comes as the department’s previous headquarters was crumbling, and later forced to close. Mayor Jared Kraham said the new 20,0000-square-foot facility will be a huge help in serving the community.

“I think that that’s going to have a catalytic impact on that neighborhood. It’s a neighborhood with the stadium nearby, with its proximity to the downtown business district that I think could see new economic development opportunities, and this station, the way that our neighborhood fire stations in neighborhoods, that can be an anchor in that Court Street commercial district,” Kraham said.

“It’s going to be beautiful. All the modern technology is there. It’s going to make a big difference in our response. It’s a great location, and we’re really excited about it," Binghamton Fire Chief Alan Gardiner said.

Departments statewide have been looking for ways to upgrade their stations as demands increase. But in Binghamton, it’s not just the main downtown station that’s getting an improvement.

The city’s four other fire houses received $1 million for upgrades Monday, to bring many of the historic buildings up to current standards.

“When you think about a fire house, it’s not just about where we store the fire equipment. Certainly, there’s going to be improvements made to the apparatus floor, which you see behind us, but there’s also bunk rooms, there’s also bathrooms that the firefighters use. Those are circa 1920s in some cases," said Kraham.

One-hundred-and-seventeen members serve the city’s 47,000 residences within an 11.5-square-mile radius. Some fire houses haven’t been updated in 50 to 60 years.

Gardiner said new upgrades will better allow firefighters to serve those within the smaller neighborhoods quicker and more effectively.

“They’re very important, especially to our response times. We have them spread out over the city. We have 10,000 calls a year and they’re kind of set up in zones, and they’re responsible for certain zones," said Gardiner.

Kraham expects to have the downtown fire station completed by the end of the year. Work is scheduled to begin on the city’s four neighborhood departments this summer.