SAN MARCOS — San Marcos Fire Station No. 4 will be up and running by the end of March, completing a fire station network that offers firefighters quick access to all parts of the city.

The $5.9 million station at 204 San Elijo Road has been a long time coming. The need for a fourth station to serve the city’s southward industrial and residential developments in the San Elijo Hills area was recognized as early as the mid 1990s. Response times to the area from Fire Station No. 2 in Lake San Marcos were a high as 14 minutes.

Construction of the new station was delayed to coincide with the connection of Twin Oaks Valley Road to San Elijo Road, but residents demanded a temporary station in the area.

“That fire station was the very first issue I became active on as a resident,” recalled Councilman Chris Orlando. “The first time I stepped before the council, first time I wrote an op ed (was) to get the fire station built.”

In 2004, the city converted part of the San Elijo Community Center into a makeshift fire station. The station’s three-man crew was quartered in an apartment reserved for the center’s caretaker.

The measure worked, cutting response time to less than five minutes, but the station’s firefighters are looking forward to moving into their permanent facility.

“We’re going to have a little more room,” Capt. Jay Butler said. “It’s really a first-class facility.”

The new station will house the same engine and crew as the temporary station, but also a brushfire engine and a specialized trail rescue vehicle.

Station No. 4 has the same floor plan as Fire Station No. 2, which saved money on architect’s fees, but the exterior and roof design are tailored to match the characteristic look of the San Elijo community.

Fire Station No. 4 is also the city’s flagship showcase for new environmentally sensitive and power efficient building technologies. Its construction conforms to the U.S. Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, or LEED system, the nationally accepted benchmark for the design, construction and operation of green buildings.

Solar cells will provide 95 percent of the station’s energy. Inexpensive, natural materials have been used whenever possible. For example, the same stone blasted out of the hills to make room for the San Elijo neighborhoods was used in the construction of the new firehouse.

“Rather than buy artificial stone or have real stone shipped from a distance, we used the stone that was right there,” fire Chief Todd Newman said.

Orlando called the new station the best of both worlds. “It’s a beautiful facility, and because of the LEED certification a very efficient facility. Not only are we improving public safety, we’re doing it in a very smart way,” he said.