Amidst rising cost estimates, the District of Squamish's proposed new firehall in Valleycliffe is now expected to cost $16.7 million, and will no longer be carbon-neutral ready.
This is the latest increase in estimate price. Previously, the firehall was expected to total at around $12 million. Before that, it was initially expected to tally up at about $10 million.
After doing a recent analysis, staff found the price for the firehall has risen once again. Staff also found that it would be more cost-effective to forgo a carbon-neutral-ready building and instead opt for a building that was LEED certified.
Carbon-neutral-ready buildings are designed so that they may be easily modified to have a net-zero carbon footprint.
The LEED-certified design will ensure it meets environmental standards, but it will not be on the verge of having a net-zero carbon footprint as originally hoped for. The LEED building will also save the municipality from spending an additional $2.1 million.
A carbon-neutral-ready building would've added up to about $18.8 million, staff say.
Rolland Russell, acting manager of financial planning, said that borrowing the extra $2.1 million would've bumped against the limits of municipal borrowing regulations, putting the District at some financial risk.
Staff recommended that council approve the $16.7-million building with LEED certification during council's Jan. 21 meeting.
Elected officials voted unanimously in favour of approving this change in direction for the firehall.
Municipal capital projects manager Jesse Morwood told council that the carbon-neutral ready design would've had little bang for the buck.
Over the building's lifetime, the carbon-neutral ready design would've saved an additional 50 tonnes when compared with the LEED design, he said.
Relatively speaking, this is a fairly small amount, Morwood said.
By comparison, the upcoming $1.25-million landfill gas flare will save 7,500 tonnes of carbon dioxide per year, he said.
Similarly, spending the flare's price tag on carbon offsetting could save 70,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide. Sequestering greenhouse gas via local company Carbon Engineering could save between 9,000 to 22,000 tonnes for the same amount.
There's also little financial incentive for making the firehall carbon-neutral ready, Morwood said.
"There's a large discrepancy between the amount of money being invested and the savings we'd be getting back," he said.
The new Valleycliffe firehall is intended to be a post-disaster building away from the floodplain that will allow the municipality to carry out emergency operations even after a disaster hits.
It's expected to be the Squamish Fire Rescue headquarters, as well as the new home of the Emergency Operations Centre, which is in the RCMP building at the moment.
A new District IT server room will be there, as well.
Squamish firefighters say they appreciate having their voices heard for this project.
So thrilled for this! A true investment into our service! Beyond words! https://t.co/PVZVMoV1TC
— IAFF Local 2874 (@2874Iaff) January 24, 2020
"The Squamish Fire Fighters IAFF Local 2874 appreciates the District of Squamish giving frontline firefighters the opportunity to contribute and give input to how this fire hall can best protect local families and our community," said Kyle Derksen, president of IAFF Local 2874.
"It's important to involve us in the process because it's our local firefighters that live in our neighbourhoods who know the safety needs of our community best."
Derksen noted the design process is ongoing, but so far, members are excited at the options.
The District's project team is working to get a development permit approved by mid-2020. The building design will be shared with the public after the application is submitted.
Squamish Fire Rescue currently has 10 full-time employees and 47 paid-on-call firefighters. The current fleet includes six fire trucks and four response vehicles.
While the new Valleycliffe firehall is being built, a temporary firehall will be created by the hospital to serve that area in the meantime. Additional parking spaces will be created to accommodate the demand, the District says.
In addition to the construction of the new Valleycliffe facility, the District plans to rebuild Tantalus Road firehall at its current site. It will be a centre for volunteers.
The combined new firehalls are being planned to house up to seven fire trucks, four response vehicles, and up to 60 full-time and paid-on-call firefighters and staff.
