The City of Victoria will decide this week how it intends to replace the Victoria Fire Department’s aging headquarters.
A report prepared by city staff recommends council approve a multi-stage procurement process to establish a new facility to replace the existing Yates Street fire hall.
The report suggests the new $30-million build be funded by the city’s debt-reduction reserve.
Mayor Lisa Helps expects the proposed plan will be approved.
“Our staff have done a great job. New fire hall with no property tax lift to pay for it? Not bad,” she said. “That’s enterprising.”
The existing fire hall is the city’s largest of three stations and houses the department’s administration, prevention, training, mechanical and suppression offices.
The two-storey, 17,000-square-foot building has been upgraded since it was built in 1958, but is not seismically sound and the department’s new trucks barely fit in the bays.
The staff report recommends a new headquarters be built on the existing site — 1234 and 1240 Yates St. — or on a new site to be determined.
The report recommends issuing a request for qualifications as a first step in a formal, competitive procurement process, as it will ensure proponents are both qualified and have the financial backing for a large project.
Staff have suggested that after the qualification process closes, the city could opt to negotiate directly with a preferred party or issue a request for proposals.
The method could result in the city “achieving a greater benefit through an innovative partnership rather than using traditional methods of procurement,” the report says.
Staff have recommended building new rather than upgrading and renovating the existing space, despite the higher initial pricetag of new construction.
According to the report, a $17-million renovation would extend the life of the 58-year-old facility by only 10 to 15 years.
At that point, it would require another $17-million investment, while a new build would meet current and future needs for 75 years, it says.
According to the report, the debt-reduction reserve, which has a balance of $32 million, has sufficient funding for the fire hall and the current debt budget has room to cover the required repayment costs.
That means property taxes would not have to be increased to pay for it.
However, staff did note that using the reserve funds would leave little for refurbishing the aging Crystal Pool, another project on the city’s agenda.
