A barebones Fernie city council has decided to move forward with finalizing the process of building a fire hall replacement at Prentice Park.
On Wednesday, November 12, Council approved to have a public hearing that will allow residents to comment on an OCP amendment and rezoning of Prentice Park from “Parks” to “Institutional”, citing the fire hall as a key institutional use.
The decision-makers only consisted of councillors Kyle Hamilton, Audia Kelly, Ted Shoesmith and Troy Nixon, who also served in place of Mayor Nic Milligan’s absence. Two other councillors were missing from the meeting.
All four then unanimously agreed to allocate $260,520 of budgeted funds to advance the design stage from 70 to 100 per cent.
Shoesmith, who has long been against the fire hall’s scope and location, explained his choice to approve the motion.
“I’m gonna make myself no friends, make everybody really upset at me, but I am not leaning towards voting this down because firstly, that would not change anything as it would simply get voted back in later, and we would proceed,” he said.
“It would merely be a speed bump and a massive expense and inconvenience for our contractors.”
Forms for public consultation are set to be available from Friday, November 14, to November 24 through the Let’s Talk Fernie website or by paper copy left at the front counter at City Hall.
If all goes as scheduled, construction is expected to begin in spring 2026, with servicing targeted for the following year.
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