Halifax councillor pitches idea of modernizing fire stations with housing

A Halifax councillor is looking at creative solutions on how to handle the municipality’s aging firefighting infrastructure, alongside the critical need for more housing.

Dartmouth-area Coun. Tony Mancini has brought forward a motion to council to explore cost-sharing opportunities in which new fire stations could be built to incorporate housing in the same building.

“The challenge (is that) fire stations are anywhere from $10 to $15 million a pop,” he said.

“Before we replace these fire stations or add new fire stations, (it will) be a long, long time from now with the way our budget is and our capital budget is.”

Mancini is asking for a staff report on potential housing partnership opportunities to help replace two fire stations: Station 13 on King Street in Dartmouth and Station 3 on West Street in Halifax.

He describes the two stations as being in such dire need of replacement that they’re “literally just keeping together, holding together with duct tape.”

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“We need to replace these facilities sooner (rather) than later. So we need to be creative (about) how we’re going to do this,” he said.

He adds that other cities, such as Vancouver, have looked at partnerships to help offset the cost of modernizing old fire stations with housing or community space included in the building.

In 2019, the City of Vancouver unveiled a new social housing project that was built atop a redeveloped firehall. The project, which was operated by the YWCA, included 31 units to house between 65 and 90 women and children.

“Firehalls have long been a symbol of safety and protection in our communities, and now this firehall will be that same symbol, but in a very different way,” said then-Vancouver mayor Kennedy Stewart.

The Halifax Professional Fire Fighters Association acknowledges the financial and logistical issues the municipality faces when handling aging infrastructure.

In a statement, the union’s vice-president, Joe Triff, says they’re intrigued by the idea but stress that any fire station changes must prioritize public safety first.

“We are interested in reviewing the details of this motion and any potential solutions it may identify,” Triff wrote.

“As always, we stand ready to engage as stakeholders to ensure that any changes support effective emergency response and the safety of our communities.”

The motion will be brought before regional council on Tuesday. Mancini hopes councillors will be open to the idea because he believes a creative solution is needed.

“My concern, once again, is that if we wait … it’s going to be a long, long time. And then it becomes a safety issue. We need to address this sooner than later,” he said.

— With a file from Simon Little