CHERRY GROVE - A Cherry Grove Fire Hall feasibility report was presented to MD of Bonnyville council on Aug. 22, with many council members speaking in favour of the project – despite its steep price tag.
In May, council directed administration to return with options for the building of a fire hall in Cherry Grove. Administration used the designs of the two most recent fire halls built in Ardmore and Fort Kent, and the LaCorey fire hall’s water capture system, to come up with a cost estimate.
"Both building options lean heavily on Infrastructure Services who can provide some of the initial project needs such as clearing land, preparing roads and approaches, and excavation and placement of sewage and water systems on the exterior,” said Luis Gandolfi, Director of Public Safety with the MD of Bonnyville.
If approved, construction could get underway as soon as the spring of 2024, heard council.
The architecture firm involved in the Fort Kent and Ardmore halls indicated to administration that building costs for a Cherry Grove fire hall will have increased by about 45 per cent by the spring of 2024.
Option A presented to council was noted as the Ardmore version, which has a price of about $6.8 million. Option B presented to council was the Fort Kent version, which has a price of about $5.3 million. The Ardmore shop includes space for other MD of Bonnyville heavy machinery, such as graders, rather than just space for the fire hall.
Building a fire hall in Cherry Grove does tie in with the strategic plan of enhancing safety in the community, said Gandolfi.
“In addition, Cherry Grove is somewhat isolated from the rest of the MD and is our largest hamlet,” he noted. “It is a heavily wooded area that could be exposed to risk due to the lack of a local fire response.”
Coun. Josh Crick asked how long it takes for Cold Lake fire to respond to call in Cherry Grove, since they are the first crew called to fires. Gandolfi said he did not have that information with him but estimated the distance is about 20 kms from Cold Lake.
In response, Coun. Ben Fadeyiw, who represents Ward 6 and the Cherry Grove area, noted that the MD of Bonnyville has fire halls in areas such as Fort Kent and Ardmore, and noted he was not sure why the distance from Cold Lake would be important. A few buildings in Cherry Grove have been total losses due to fire over the past year, and residents sit and feel completely helpless, said Fadeyiw.
Coun. Don Slipchuk spoke in favour of the project. “I think it’s very critical that we pursue this option to get a fire hall going in Cherry Grove, for just peace of mind even for residents and quicker response time.”
Coun. Dana Swigart stated, “I agree. We probably should have started funding for this some years ago.” He did note that staffing the fire hall would have to be looked at soon, and work would have to be done with the City of Cold Lake to do so.
“It may take a couple years to staff it,” said Swigart.
Fadeyiw was confident that people in the community would be willing to volunteer as firefighters. People have been calling and asking what’s been happening with the potential project, he said.
Reeve Barry Kalinski also spoke in favour of the project, and noted he was confident there would be volunteers to staff the fire hall. He also noted doing a project similar to Ardmore would allow for more MD of Bonnyville equipment to be stored in the area also, which would be a benefit.
Gandolfi estimated it would take about a year to build the fire hall.
During discussions, council heard that one unique feature in Cherry Grove would be a cistern at the fire hall since there is no water system to access in the hamlet. This could result in different costs associated with the project.
A motion was made by Fadeyiw to direct administration to bring the Cherry Grove firehall project to 2024 budget deliberations using the design and costing estimates for Option A, which is the Ardmore design. Council voted unanimously in favour of the motion.
