ROANOKE, Va. – After 100 years of service, one of Roanoke's oldest fire stations is coming down brick by brick.
Demolition started on Fire Station 7 in Grandin Village Wednesday morning. The station, which was built in 1922, is being demolished to make way for a new fire station on the same site.
"It's bittersweet seeing it come down," Roanoke Fire EMS Chief David Hoback said. "It's served our community for a long time, and served it very well, but it will not serve us for the next 75 to 100 years."
Hoback said the fire department recognizes the historical value of Fire Station 7 and will use bits and pieces of it while constructing the new station.
"We're actually loading bricks, and that's why they've been so delicate pulling the front facade off," Hoback said. "We're going to use that brick as an accent wall in the new building."
Demolition of the old fire station could last through the end of the week. Hoback said construction of the new station, which will also include permanently closing a portion of Denniston Avenue, could be complete in a year.