New $13M apartments coming to Lexington. But first, firefighters will use the site to train

A new three-story, 105-unit apartment complex is coming to Lexington, but the owner of the property is first going to let the local fire department uses the site for extensive training.

The Lexington Fire Department announced Tuesday it has teamed up with Cowgill Partners for extensive training over the next two weeks. Cowgill temporarily donated a 20,000-square-foot building on the property at 340 Legion Drive for the fire department to use for the training. It’s scheduled for demolition once the department finishes its training. The now-empty building is a former office building.

“This is a unique opportunity for our members to gain valuable experience conducting training exercises that are otherwise difficult to simulate,” said Training Battalion Chief Jordan Saas. “More than 200 firefighters will take turns stretching hose, cutting ventilation holes, forcing doors, practicing large area search and rescue, and more. We are grateful to Cowgill for bringing this opportunity to us.”

The Legion Drive property is close to South Broadway. The training is scheduled to last from Tuesday until April 7.

The training won’t include any live fires, according to Maj. Jessica Bowman with the Lexington Fire Department. Some exercises trainees will perform are large area search and rescue, ventilation, stretching hand lines and forcible entry, Bowman said.

“There’s quite a bit we can do without live fire,” Bowman said.

Nearby residents were given advance notice of the training exercise, and appropriate safety measures were taken to ensure that there is no risk to the public, the fire department said.

“We are thrilled the fire department is able to train in the building,” said Senior Project Manager Carson Baughman from Cowgill Partners. “Their efforts to prepare for an emergency contribute to the safety of our community, which is something we can all get behind.”

More on multi million-dollar Lexington apartment complex

After the training period, the site will be filled with a new three-story, 105-unit apartment complex. Construction is estimated to cost $13 million.

Amenities for the apartment complex will include a club room, fitness center, fire pit, outdoor amenity space, long-term bike parking, bark park and electronic access, according to the fire department.

“Flexibility is key in today’s environment; this community aims to make the rental experience as smooth as possible. Residents won’t have to worry about dealing with utility accounts after their move, our management team will take care of it all,” Baughman said. “There has been substantial development activity along the South Broadway corridor over the past several years and this community will support continued growth by contributing much-needed housing.”

Cowgill will oversee the construction. Morris Workshop Architects designed the project and Carman Engineering is the civil engineer.

Cowgill owns two nearby apartment complexes in Lexington: The Studios at Belmont and Belmont Run.