A special Tri Council meeting, comprised of council members and representatives from the Township of Armour, the Township of Ryerson, and the Village of Burk’s Falls, met on March 25, 2024, at the Katrine Community Centre to approve the 2024 Burk’s Falls District Fire Department budget, which includes $50,000 in shared financing toward the preliminary engineering fees required to build a new fire hall.
The three councils meet periodically each year to review, approve, and discuss shared services and joint assets owned and financially supported by each of the three municipalities, located within the Village of Burks Falls – such as the landfill, library, arena and fire hall services.
In the February meeting, Armour and Ryerson each approved the 2024 fire department budget but Burk’s Falls tabled the motion, pending further review.
The fire department budget, services that are crucial to all three municipalities, involved decisive funding toward building a long-promised fire hall in the area. The current fire hall in Burk’s Fall no longer meets the requirements to house the needs of the current fire department, having been assessed with a number of deficiencies.
The special Tri-Council Meeting held on March 25th was called by the Township of Armour to resolve the position of the Village of Burk’s Falls.
Mayor Chris Hope clarified, “It was just a simple question of cash flow, making sure that Burk’s Falls space things out so we can do projects in such a way that we’re not absolutely hammering our ratepayers over and over again.”
Final ownership of the new fire hall remains a continuing discussion. The attendant councillors determined that whatever ownership scheme was eventually adopted, it must not delay the groundwork for building the new facility. Future ownership would be based on the actual contributions from each municipality. Initiating the project is paramount to allow municipal staff to investigate available grants, secure financing, and engineering prerequisites.
As per council bylaws – Tri Council meetings act the same as individual council meetings. Burk’s Fall Councillors passed a resolution during the session to approve the 2024 Burk’s Falls District Fire Department budget, freeing up resources to begin the new fire Hall build.
Amour Township has purchased a site at the corner of Pegg’s Mountain Road and Highway 520, right beside the Highway 11 exit, to accommodate the new fire hall. The estimated total cost is six million dollars with a desired occupancy date of 2026.
The next Tri Council meeting is scheduled for May 27, 2024, and will be hosted by the Village of Burk’s Falls.
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