Strathmore fire hall proposal carries price tag of up to $26 million

By Melissa Crispin-Piche Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Strathmore council got a detailed look Oct. 14 at a proposed $24-million to $26-million fire hall intended to replace a crowded station where an administrative employee works in the entrance hallway and firefighters exercise beside trucks and equipment.

The project remains in preliminary design, with a funding proposal still to come before council. If approved construction could begin in June or July 2027, with firefighters moving in around the end of 2028.

At the committee of the whole meeting, infrastructure manager Ethan Wilson said the design was far enough along to seek more reliable pricing, but several steps remained before construction.

“We’re not at a point where we’re ready to build. We’re not at a point where we’re ready to submit for permits,” he said.

The proposed hall would have direct access to Wheatland Trail and serve as the town’s only operating fire station. Fire Chief David Sturgeon said mapping showed the location could support a 10-minute response throughout Strathmore, including areas identified for future growth.

Sturgeon described a current facility in which rooms do several jobs at once. The training room also serves as a lunchroom, storage room and workspace for three firefighters. The apparatus bay doubles as a fitness and training area, despite the diesel exhaust and contaminated equipment associated with its main use.

Some lockers sit about a foot from the trucks. Equipment that cannot fit at the hall is stored elsewhere in town, meaning crews responding to a hazardous materials call must first collect a trailer from the public works shop.

“We have equipment all over town,” Sturgeon said. The new design separates contaminated areas from clean living and working spaces. It includes a dedicated vehicle wash bay, fitness and training areas, sleeping quarters and an emergency coordination centre that would also be used for training.

Plans call for about 10,300 square feet of apparatus space and 15,400 square feet of administrative space over two floors. Wilson said the latter figure includes sleeping and other staff accommodations rather than simply offices. Eight dorm rooms would allow for future staffing needs.

Sturgeon said the building was being planned for a combined full-time and paid-on-call complement of up to 50 firefighters. Providing room for the paid-on-call members who help staff with additional responding trucks was a priority.

Councillors pressed the project team on the size of the building, its cost and whether all the proposed uses belonged under one roof.

Coun. Melissa Langmaid questioned moving municipal enforcement into the hall when a future RCMP facility might offer a more logical location. Administration said the move would provide secure vehicle storage and shared administrative support, and the offices could be converted to other uses if enforcement moved again.

Coun. Claude Brown asked whether using the existing hall for municipal enforcement could reduce the size and cost of the new building. Administration said the old hall’s future would need to be considered alongside other municipal space and maintenance needs.

No decision has been made on the existing building. Possibilities discussed included selling it, repurposing it for municipal operations or retaining space for firefighter training.

The town expects to borrow a portion of the money for the new hall, although the amount and funding mix have yet to be determined. Administration said paying for the entire project through provincial infrastructure funding would compete with roads, water infrastructure and other capital work.

Land acquisition also remains unfinished. Wilson said council would receive both the land and building costs when the full budget comes forward, whether presented together or as separate items.

Wilson cited rising construction prices and uncertainty over tariffs as pressures on the estimate. The team planned to refine pricing through the rest of October and into early November, ahead of budget deliberations.

Councillors asked about sharing facilities or costs with Wheatland County. Administration said preliminary discussions had taken place on fire services and dispatching but no arrangement was presented.

The project team also addressed the effect on nearby homes. Landscaping along the west side of the site is intended to help screen light and sound, with details still to be refined.

Wilson said the design sought to balance current needs with room for the next 20 to 30 years.

“We are trying to keep things as small as possible, as tight as possible, as limited as possible for what this facility will need the day it opens,” he said.

The next step is a more detailed cost and funding proposal for council’s consideration during the 2027 capital budget process.