It's such a tight fit in the Huguenot Volunteer Fire Station in Powhatan County that the firetrucks' mirrors are only about an inch from being taken off when the vehicles pass through the bay doors. And once the trucks are backed in, their bumpers nearly touch the building's rear wall.

An old kitchen doubles as a workstation, and an upstairs room serves as a combination office, sleeping quarters and dayroom.

"Space is at a premium in this place," said the department's chief, Taylor Goodman. "Basically anything that requires more than 10 people sitting down we have to pull our equipment outside."

Now Goodman and county officials are gleefully looking over plans for a bigger and better facility. Plans call for the new station to be built next year.

Officials with the Huguenot Station, also known as Fire Department No. 2, explored every option for staying in the two-story building that has been home for so long.

"We ran into access issues, drain-field issues; every time we thought we could work it out, we ran into a new problem," Goodman said. "You were going to spend more money doing demolition than to start fresh."

Built in 1971 largely by members' labor with materials scavenged from buildings slated to be torn down to make way for Interstate 195, the 3,600-square-foot building has outlived its purpose.

The new facility, which will cost $5.6 million including design, will include a 14,300-square-foot building featuring five bays, a public meeting room that can accommodate 75 people with access to vending machines and a kitchen area.

The station will have space for the rescue squad and an office where a deputy will be able to make calls and do paperwork.

The new building also will include eight individual bunk rooms, three individual shower and toilet areas -- amenities planned with an eye toward the day when the county could have career firefighters who would have to live in the building for up to 24 hours at a time.

The growth of the station mirrors the county's growth.

Fire Station No. 2 will serve some of the growth areas in the eastern part of the county and the larger building will allow for newer, larger equipment, said Chris Rapp, the county's utilities and general services director who is overseeing the project.

Like Fire Station No. 1, which was built about 2000, the new Huguenot station will be built, owned and maintained by the county. The county has five fire stations, and "each fire station after this will be county built and owned," Rapp said.

The new station also will have room for a ladder truck, something the county currently doesn't have. No decision has been made about purchasing a ladder truck or housing it, but the station would be a step in preparation. Purchasing such a truck could have a positive financial influence on the county by allowing construction of buildings over three stories, Goodman said.

The new Huguenot station has been in the county's five-year plan since 2000 and a building committee was created in 2004.

The department delayed replacing an 18-year-old truck until the new building is completed because of the increasing size of modern trucks. The new station is going to have a great impact in the delivery of fire and EMS to the citizens, Goodman said.

"The new station is being designed to encourage all members to spend as much time as possible at the station . . . [and] with more personnel in the station, it leads to quicker responses, quicker mitigation of emergencies, and ultimately, a safer community."

Contact Jamie C. Ruff at (434) 392-6605 or jruff@timesdispatch.com.