The City of Cold Lake rewarded their downtown firefighters with a new fire hall last year, fireman's pole and all.
On July 9, 2016, Cold Lake Fire-Rescue celebrated the opening of its new hall, which broke ground in February 2015.
The project was budgeted at $12.7 million, sits at just over 25,000 square feet, and replaced the previous 50-year-old hall.
The facility was 16 months in the making and includes a total of 10 bays used by both the fire department and Cold Lake Ambulance Services. The hall includes dormitory spaces for EMS and firefighter staff, a full kitchen, a special Emergency Operations Centre, a multipurpose tower for training and hose storage, training and classroom space as well as a lounge area.
“It's great to finally have this thing going, the effect it's had on the men has been tremendous,” said Cold Lake Fire Chief Jeff Fallow during their grand opening in July. “Since we've been here, the guys have been here day and night. The trucks have never been this clean.”
Larry Bexson with Krawford Construction, the company that completed the project, said in July 2015, the company ran into a few obstacles along the way.
“There are always obstacles. We've worked through some issues and it's typical construction. What's on paper doesn't always relate to actual construction, but any time we've lost we've made up.”
Around 30 firefighters work at the downtown hall, taking approximately two-thirds of the calls coming in. The project was much anticipated, as the department was outgrowing their old facility, which did not always offer the amenities firefighters want to see in a fire hall.
During the project's construction in July 2015, Fallow said, “This is a huge project that's long overdue; this will allow us to meet the needs of the city for decades and decades to come.”
Fallow brought a little piece of home into his new office, a makeshift mural made out of bricks from the old fire hall, a way of remembering the days before the shiny and new fire hall.
