Lutz Volunteer Fire Department is a Community Fixture, Residents Say

While the Lutz Volunteer Fire Department has an uncertain future, its rich history is as much a part of the community's history as the name Lutz itself.

The Early Years

William P. Lutz was a railroad engineer in Tampa during the turn of the century. William's brother, Charles ran a successful sawmill in the Odessa area. The Tampa Northern Railroad was completed in 1907. It connected Tampa with Brooksville and a little stop, then called Stemper, provided a way for Charles to get his lumber to market.

In 1909, Lutz built a tram track 10 miles connecting the mill to the rail line, creating Lutz Junction. A replica station stands there today.

Lutz got its first fire station in the early 1950s. It was located on the south side of Lutz Lake Fern Road, across from what was then Bullard Park. In 1961, the fire department was re-incorporated as the Lutz Volunteer Firefighter's Association Inc. In 1962, the property from 124 to 128 Lutz Lake Fern Road was purchased, and by 1963 construction was completed at the still-standing fire house. In 1973, the current building was completed across the street and operations moved there.

The fire station grew up with Lutz as the roads widened and old structures gave way to new ones. The Lutz Library opened in 1970, taking over Bullard Park.

Volunteering was already a part of Lutz history and it kicked into high gear in the mid 1970s. Lutz resident Oscar Cooler rallied neighbors and civic groups and they built the original football and baseball fields at 19045 Crooked Lane with their own materials and sweat. The site has recently been expanded into a 33-acre sports complex.

Volunteerism is a Lutz Tradition

The Lutz community pitches together every year to host the annual Fourth of July Parade. There is a 5k run, a one-mile family walk, flag-raising ceremony, parade, and the Lutz Volunteer Fire Department holds its chicken barbecue. Fire volunteers have partnered with the community for past 50 years for the event.

"They (fire department) do a lot of work in the community," local business owner Donny Duncan said.

Duncan is part owner of John's 4 Meats, a butcher shop that has been located in different sites around Lutz since 1973. The current location, on the south side of Lutz Lake Fern Road has been there for five years.

"It's nice to have a station so close by," Duncan said. "I remember when I was a kid and that station opened up."

"That station is definitely part of Lutz culture," he added.

Even Lutz branch librarian Robin Gibson, recognizes the way the station is tied to the fabric of Lutz culture.

"People underestimate how much of a workforce that station is," Gibson said.

Gibson points out that the community organizations like the 100th Anniversary Committee and the Fourth of July Committee would be helpless without the "young fire department guys helping out."

An Uncertain Future

The fire station not only provides a flow of young, active community volunteers, it also feeds the ranks of full time Hillsborough County firefighters.

"The Lutz station has been a feeder for full-time Hillsborough County firefighters as long as they've had Hillsborough County firefighters," Lutz Volunteer Fire Department Association president Jay Muffly said. "The Lutz Volunteer Fire Department is one of the best in the county, and perhaps the state."

With budget cuts looming, even already claiming some volunteer stations in the county, there is a very real danger of the Lutz Volunteer Fire Department closing its doors.

"We don't exactly know where this is all going," Muffly said. "There's always going to be some type of volunteer service, somewhere. However, volunteer firefighting as we know it, has changed."

The county is currently reviewing volunteers stations, including the Lutz department. In some areas, volunteer associations have been closed and career firefighters have taken over operations. It remains unclear if this will happen in Lutz.

Stay with Lutz Patch for updates as they become available.