Ambulance services will be staying in Sidney, thanks to a new lease agreement for space in the townB次元官网网址檚 new community safety building.

The Town of Sidney and BC Emergency Health Services (BCEHS) formalized a lease at the end of February, confirming that the local ambulance service will move in from its current Third Street location, once the community safety building (CSB) is complete B次元官网网址� and thatB次元官网网址檚 expected in early 2019.

B次元官网网址淜eeping the ambulance station in town to serve our residents has been one of the motivating factors in pursuing a new Community Safety Building,B次元官网网址� stated Mayor Steve Price in a media release. B次元官网网址淭he Town is happy to provide a new, custom-built, post-disaster building for use by BC Emergency Health Services, knowing that they will be here for the long-term.B次元官网网址�

Including the ambulance service in the has always been in the TownB次元官网网址檚 plans. A final lease agreement could not be reached, however, until a better picture of the overall costs of the facility came into focus.

B次元官网网址淣ow that the total project costs are closer to being finalized, a formal lease agreement B次元官网网址� is ready for council approval,B次元官网网址� wrote SidneyB次元官网网址檚 Director of Corporate Services Andrew Hicik in a report.

The lease is for a 20-year term, with options for renewals to extend it to 40 years. The BCEHS will pay an annual base rent of $172,648 for each of the first 20 years of the lease, up to a maximum of $2.5 million for the ambulance portion of the building. This represents 15.5 per cent of the total cost of the building.

The lease also states that the BCEHS will cover its own costs for fitting out its space with equipment and it will pay a share of common operating costs, like cleaning services and electricity.

B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檙e extremely excited to be moving into a facility thatB次元官网网址檚 built to our needs,B次元官网网址� said BCEHS Area Director for patient care delivery Lance Stephenson.

Stephenson added this is Vancouver IslandB次元官网网址檚 first purposely built joint facility for fire and emergency health services use.

B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 great to see a building with the future in mind,B次元官网网址� said Stephenson. B次元官网网址淚t really is ideal.B次元官网网址�

Hicik noted the Town, under these lease terms, should be able to recover the cost of the ambulance portion of the CSB in the first 20 years. He estimated SidneyB次元官网网址檚 total loan payments for the ambulance portion of the building to be around $130,000 a year, over 30 years at current rates. Hicik added the Town could consider borrowing the ambulance portion of the loan over a 20-year-term, to manage cash flow.

The Town of Sidney is using a combination of borrowed money, gas tax dollars, lease payments and the sale of its current fire hall building and adjacent property, to pay for the new CSB.

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The current ambulance station on Third Street, across from the fire hall, is expected to be demolished should a proposed be approved.

editor@peninsulanewsreview.com
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