Public Works

ESSENTIAL SERVICES FOR SQUAMISH

The Squamish Public Works facility is at the end of its useful life and is no longer able to support the needs of the community. A new facility is in the final stages of design to ensure uninterrupted essential service delivery such as clean drinking water, safe roads including snow and ice control, and emergency response such as flooding and extreme weather.

The new Public Works facility is carefully designed to be rightsized for the growing community through Squamish 2040 and beyond. It will maximize efficiencies and energy savings and will minimize costs where possible.

  • 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)
  • Diking and flood monitoring
  • Parks, Trails and Horticulture administrative space
  • Facilities Planning and Maintenance Department
  • Maximize use of space. At 27,000SQFT, the proposed design is highly efficient per capita (Squamish population).
  • Keep costs as low as possible.
  • Maximize energy efficiency.
  • Improve occupational health and safety, and ensure an accessible, equitable workplace.
  • 100% electrification.
  • +85% waste reduction to landfill.
  • This area is still in works, final sustainability level confirmation is due Q1 2024.

Progress

Timeline Anticipated completion date Q4 2025
Current works (as of Q4 2023 report)
  • Schematic redesign to increase site above Flood Construction Level (FCL) complete
  • Detail design underway
  • Northern boundary detail design
  • Constructing around existing utilities on site in design, ground work planning for pre-load/FCL increase/soil contamination management
  • Interior design and layout of office space
  • Impact of building close to Waste Water Treatment Plant circulars
  • Parking design, ramp design, accessibility design, future expansion allowance, sustainability details and required level
Budget $37M 
Next Steps Re-start groundworks, return to Council with final indicative costing/scope of work/specifications prior to moving forward with building construction
Hurdles Cost escalation adding budgetary pressure on other REFMP projects, operational and cost impact of building above FCL
Other Nil

News and Updates

 A report to Council was presented by Staff on the Public Works Facility and Indicative Cost Update

 

View our Explainer to learn more.

The current Squamish Public Works Facility is at the end of its useful life and is no longer able to support the needs of the community. The District of Squamish proposed to borrow a sum not exceeding $20,202,020 under authority of “District of Squamish Public Works Facility Capital Works Loan Authorization Bylaw No. 2915, 2022”. Council adopted the bylaw after receiving the AAP results report.

We require elector approval to borrow $20M paid back over 20 years to fund the replacement and minimize taxpayer impact. Long-term borrowing spreads the cost of the facility over the life of the project so that future taxpayers help pay for the facility, as well as today’s taxpayers. 

View the results of The Elector Alternative Approval Process.

Background

Facility challenges are growing and will exponentially worsen as the community grows and service demands increase.

Take a tour of our current Public Works Facility with Chief Building Inspector Colin McCarthy and Technical Operations Manager Ben Kineshanko.

Funding Public Works

Long-term borrowing over 20 years provides the most flexibility at a low interest rate with the least impact to taxpayers.

Borrowing is a valuable tool that helps to spread the cost of large capital projects amongst current and future taxpayers.

Long-term borrowing allows the District to:

☑   Divide the cost amongst all future taxpayers over time.
☑   Fund major capital projects that have a long life span
☑   Reduce the average taxpayer impacts

Funding Impact by Borrowing Versus Property Taxation (per $1M assessed value):

  Borrowing per year over 20 years (amount will reduce over time with population growth) Property tax impact if funded in a single year (per $1M assessment) Property tax impact if spread over two years (per year cost, per $1M assessment)
* Class 1 - Residential $116.30 $1,510.00 $755.00
* Class 6 - Commercial $298.80 $3,880.60 $1,940.30

* Other tax classes will also be impacted
* Tax impact numbers are estimates utilizing 2021 mill rates.

FAQs

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

  • 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.
  • The land for this location was originally provided to the District at no cost from the Province to be used for municipal purposes. Public Works requires a large parcel of land. If the facility were built elsewhere, the District would need to purchase land, adding significant cost to the project.

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:

  • Watery 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)
  • 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.

Yes. The District is having discussions with School District 48 about the possibility to share facilities with a future replacement of the municipal offices. Further discussions will continue and all options will be fully explored. No decisions have been made about new municipal offices and a lease has not been signed. That is a decision the next Council will make, and staff will bring forward buy vs lease scenarios for exploration.

Co-locating the school district’s offices at the Public Works Facility was not discussed. While the location is ideally suited for Public Works, there is not enough space available for a mixed-use facility.

In addition to School District 48, the District has considered other government and non-government users groups for potential opportunities to partner with, including arts, culture, heritage, health, and sport groups.

A contract to build the new Public Works Facility is in place. However, this contract is dependent on financing being approved. If financing is not approved, we may lose this contractor. This will mean that we need to start over again and renegotiate in a market where materials and construction costs continue to increase.

All facility upgrade decisions are guided by the Real Estate and Facilities Master Plan (REFMP). The REFMP was developed to tackle the monumental facilities renewal challenges facing the District today. The REFMP aims to close the gap between what we have and what we need, recognizing that we have many facilities to upgrade. It is a valuable blueprint that is guiding discussion, collaboration and decision-making.

With over 20 facility upgrades identified in the REFMP, 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.

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 to receive external funding. Therefore, borrowing to complete this project is the preferred way to pay for this facility as it will have the least impact on taxpayers.

Brennan Park Recreation Centre is an important facility to upgrade for our community. It is a great candidate to attract external funding. The District will continue to pursue grant funding opportunities to complete the important upgrades needed at Brennan Park.

The costs for the Public Works Facility increased in the second AAP process due to increasing costs in the construction industry. Like the price of many things globally, the costs for building materials and construction labour continue to increase.