Today, the cities of Brentwood, Clayton, Maplewood, and Richmond Heights will come together for a groundbreaking ceremony for the new Central Core Fire Training Center. This training center, located in Shrewsbury, will provide “a state-of-the-art facility for advanced firefighter and emergency responder training, further strengthening the region’s collaborative approach to public safety,” a statement reads.
The four-city partnership started in 2017 with the installation of a shared training chief to develop standardized training protocols across the participating departments. Jason Hildebrandt, whose title is Clayton fire training chief but works with all four departments, sees the addition of a physical facility as a big step forward.
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“I’m hoping that this is kind of the jumping-off point for more consolidation and more cooperative effort,” Hildebrandt says. “I believe it’ll be a great example of both public, private and intergovernmental cooperation as a success story for our region.”
The four cities involved have trained together on a quarterly basis through an agreement with the West County Fire Protection District to utilize its training facility. But Hildebrandt explains finding locations and structures that the team can utilize and not damage can be very difficult.
“Having this facility at our disposal is going to just provide opportunities that we have not had in the fold during the eight years we’ve had this cooperative training program,” he says. “The ability for the four cities to come together to construct it, it’s honestly unprecedented in our region.”
The cities of Webster Groves and Shrewsbury have also trained with the group in the past, and Hildebrandt hopes to see them eventually join the center.
Key benefits of the Central Core Fire Training Center will include enhanced training capabilities for regional fire departments, improved emergency response readiness, cost-effective resource sharing among participating cities, standardized training protocols across municipal boundaries, and strengthened inter-agency cooperation and communication.
“Recent events like the May tornado demonstrated how communities benefit when first responders have access to exceptional training and seamless collaboration,” said Clayton Fire Chief Ernie Rhodes in a statement. “Together, our four cities are creating a world-class training facility that will enhance emergency preparedness and benefit residents across our communities for decades to come.”
Today’s groundbreaking marks the beginning of construction on the facility, which will be fully operational by April 2026.
“This groundbreaking represents more than just the start of construction—it symbolizes the power of regional cooperation in addressing critical public safety needs,” says Rhodes in a statement.
