The Warren County Ambulance District is getting closer to purchasing land for a new base in Wright City.District officials expect to close on a 1.5-acre tract, located at the southwest corner of Bell Road and Westwoods Road, later this month, Assistant Administrator Tim Flake said. The tract is across from Wright City Middle School.A possible purchase price was not disclosed. Cannon Builders owns the property.The ambulance district is planning to construct an approximate 6,000-square-foot facility at the new property. The base would have five bedrooms, three drive-through bays and a training room that could be used by the community, according to Flake.Gerloff Design Group, Warrenton, will serve as the project manager. A contract is expected to be awarded in May.“We are looking to get into the new building this fall,” Flake said.The property is located in a growing area of the city. The district’s current base in Wright City is located at 111 W.S. Second St. on the southern end of the city. It also has crews stationed at two bases in Warrenton, at its headquarters on Fairgrounds Road and South Highway 47.“We did look around and do some shopping, as far as economically and serviceability where the best places would be,” District Administrator Ralph Hellebusch said. “One part is there is some potential growth up on the northern Bell Road area. We have multiple ways to get to I-70. It would give us fairly quick service area to residents north of the interstate.”Officials said the district could operate out of both Wright City locations initially, but that the district also will attempt to sell the property. If the property is sold, the district would open a new base closer to Innsbrook.“Those are our future plans,” Hellebusch said. “How quick we will be able to get those done, that still remains. It’s not that we want to desert any of the southern Wright City area, they will get a truck.”The new base was made possible by voters approving a 15-cent property tax increase in April 2014. Besides the property, the additional funds were sought to help the district replace its aging ambulance fleet and equipment and hire additional staff.It was the district’s first tax hike since 2001.The district, which encompasses 240 square miles, responded to over 4,000 emergency calls in 2015. In 213, its call volume was 3,675.“We’re getting busier out here,” Hellebusch said.Warren County Ambulance District