Public Works Facility

The location for the new Public Works Facility has important advantages that make it ideally suited for Public Works, including:

• Centrally located
• Highest and best use of this land
• It is located beside the Waste Water Treatment Plant, an important function of Public Works. These facilities share staff and office space, creating management efficiencies and reducing operational costs
• Known site preparation and land costs (e.g. environmental and geotechnical conditions)
• Development can begin in a timely fashion (e.g. no rezoning or land acquisition processes required)

Yes. To limit costs to the taxpayers, the District explores opportunities to combine facilities each time a new municipal facility is considered. At this time, the new Public Works Facility will include the following service areas:

• Water supply and distribution
• Wastewater collection and treatment (in adjacent building)
• Roads and drainage services, including snow and ice control, stormwater collection and drainage
• Fleet maintenance (including all District vehicles, Squamish Fire Rescue, Parks, Search and Rescue fleet)
• Diking and flood monitoring
• Parks, Trails and Horticulture administrative space
• Facilities Planning and Maintenance Department

There will also be office space included in the new facility to accommodate additional municipal staff.

Opportunities to relocate the new Tantalus Fire Hall were considered at Public Works. However, due to insurance requirements, the location of the Tantalus Fire Hall must remain within a strict boundary in order for it to service the community. The Public Works land falls outside of this boundary.

Public Works provides critical services for our community. Along with two fire halls, it is the highest priority to replace. The Public Works Facility is not a candidate for external grant funding as typically grants do not fund these types of projects. Therefore, borrowing to complete this project is the preferred way to pay for this facility as it will have the least impact on taxpayers.

With over 20 facility upgrades identified in the Real Estate and Facilities Master Plan, external funding will be required to complete all of the upgrades in a reasonable time frame. External funding could come in the form of grants from other levels of government, sponsorships, or partnerships.

Brennan Park Recreation Centre is an important facility to upgrade for our community. It is a great candidate to attract external funding and the District has been heavily focused on sourcing funds that do not impact taxation. The District will continue to pursue grant funding opportunities to complete the important upgrades needed at Brennan Park. In April 2023, Council endorsed the REFMP Pre-Development Project to undertake the due diligence required to support important upcoming decisions on several projects, including Brennan Park. This work will:

• Determine how the additional facilities uses (eg. ice rink, pool and wellness centre) can co-locate together at the Brennan Park location.
• Understand how these facilities interact or are supported by satellite recreation facilities throughout the community.
• A thorough scan of external funding sources, including grant funding, private operators, partnerships, sponsorship, community amenity contributions and other alternative options.