New Municipal Hall

Municipal Hall was constructed in 1972 and has since required multiple temporary modular trailer expansions in order to accommodate the growing staff requirements. The Real Estate and Facilities Masterplan determined Municipal Hall is performing poorly in all categories, including capacity, and life safety, and that the building and all of its systems are at end‐of‐life. A previous space plan completed as part of the Municipal Hall Redevelopment study indicated that the current Municipal Hall is approximately 3,500ft2 too small based on current spatial needs and those needs could reach 33,000ft2 (vs. 20,000ft2 today) in the next 10‐15 years. A significant investment into repairing the current facility to maintain the basic operating level, and making seismic upgrades and renovating/modernizing the facility is unsupportable given these space challenges.

Progress

Timeline To be determined.

Current works

Space plan is complete and civic site locations are complete.

Budget To be developed.
Next Steps Project charter, lease vs. buy detailed options, explore property developer opportunities, explore School Board/partner opportunities, planning review incorporating all District statutory documents (Official Community Plan, Downtown Entrance Study etc.)

A Real Estate and Facilities Master Plan (REFMP) Pre-Development project is underway to determine various options for the development of Municipal Offices
Hurdles N/A
Other N/A

News and Updates

Pre-Development Project is underway, determining various options for replacing Municipal Offices. Options include potentially incorporating Municipal Hall as part of a new Civic Block that could include an expanded Squamish Public Library and community centre, co-location with government and non-government entities such as School District 48, and collaboration with arts, culture and heritage uses under the GLAM (Gallery, Library, Archive and Museum) umbrella. More information from the Pre-Development Project will be provided to the public in 2024.

The District of Squamish is embarking on the next phase of facility investments in Squamish by reviewing municipal facilities and land requirements in a fiscally responsible manner. Council approved an amendment to the 2023-2027 Financial Plan Bylaw to support a Real Estate and Facilities Master Plan (REFMP) Pre-Development project.

Background

The District has been analyzing its real estate and facilities needs at length since 2016. The recommendation to consider a municipal offices lease was a result of this work as part of the development of a Real Estate and Facilities Strategy (REFS) and subsequent Real Estate and Facilities Master Plan (REFMP) which provides a financial context and plan. The development of the REFS and REFMP spanned two Councils and were adopted to guide decision-making on the prioritization, timing and funding of investments into facilities and lands required to service the community.

FAQs

  • A lack of investment in planning and budgeting for reserves over decades has resulted in a required $150M+ of facility upgrades to replace end-of-life buildings and improve municipal service delivery. (Read the backgrounder for additional context).

  • A deficit of $150M+ in built assets is a tremendous hurdle for any municipality and despite growing reserves for critical infrastructure and amenities, in the next five to 10 years, the District will have to strategically manage its cash, ability to generate proceeds from sale of surplus lands, and borrowing capacity to fund the necessary future facility investments.

  • The replacement of Municipal Hall was identified as a critical priority in the REFMP. There are also community demands for improvements to facilities at both Brennan Park, including (in no particular order) a second pool, second rink and wellness centre, and the Library to serve the growing community.

  • Leasing municipal offices would prioritize and increase the ability and reduce the timing to complete projects at the Brennan Park Recreation Centre and consider the Library space needs.

  • Facility investments need to be determined in the broader context of all the District facility needs and overall capital needs (e.g. dikes, roads, Waste Water Treatment Plant, landfill, and other infrastructure). The District has developed and made public a 10-year capital plan to support the community in understanding the scope of work.

  • A creative approach is required to afford all the community’s needs within a reasonable timeframe. As a result, the REFS and REFMP both recommend that the District explore alternate forms of funding for facility investments, including partnering to reduce space needs, and leasing. Some facilities will be able to access grant funding from provincial or federal governments.

  • The REFMP recommends that a ‘Civic Block’ be analyzed (i.e. co-locating the municipal offices with a library/community centre, other government/institutional agencies, a day-care and café, for example), but not override other identified facility needs.

 In September 2021, the District shared with the community its intention to consider a lease for municipal office space in the next three to five years through a Report to Council. The cost of a lease was included as a placeholder in the draft Five-Year Financial Plan, of which Council was seeking public input as part of the financial planning process. The intention is to further analyze the lease against other options prior to making a final decision.

A backgrounder, Frequently Asked Questions and public information events were advertised, shared and held during the fall to help draw attention to the information and the budget process.

The District has not discounted the possibility of either building/owning or leasing a new Municipal Hall, potentially in collaboration with other parties. No doors have been closed to any opportunity. Partnership opportunities identified to build/own will be weighed against the costs and benefits of a lease.

Yes, and this work continues. If the District and other partners can develop a viable opportunity to partner (and one that significantly reduces the amount of capital and borrowing required by the District), it will be evaluated against the lease option to determine the optimal path forward. 

In response to a series of articles and posts that were published about the District considering a lease for
municipal office space to replace the Municipal Hall, the District created a document for detailed information and answers. 

Read the explainer here. 


Real Estate and Facilities Master Plan

Review the master plan

Real Estate and Facilities Strategy

Review the Strategy


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Comments

  • ted Prior Feb 5, 2022, 6:31 AM (2 years ago)

    The real estate plan has for the last few councils has been to not own land. When I was on council i could never understand why . The thinking was its better to sell and collect taxes .Matter of fact the district sold most of its holdings over that time. I cane not remember where the cash went , which column in the budget that is A study done on parking 22 years age directed city hall to acquire land for parking in the down town but lot after lot came up and was passed by. Now what? With land prices was that a good idea . more tax revenue more for more staff to handle the growth. and of coarse more tax increases . In alot of cases taxes are so high people have to sell its really to bad . thank goodness for deferred taxes . nothing for the next generation . I can sure feel the stress out there .

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