Fire_hall

Jeff Green | Mar 02, 2006

Feature Article

Bids received forNFfire hallby Jeff Green

This time it really might happen.

A new fire hall for the Clarendon/Miller ward came one step closer to being built last week when council received bids from three contractors in response to a request for proposal for the project.

Three bids were received on the construction project, which is now slated to be located on the same site as the township offices and garage, just north of Ardoch. Ennis Carpentry of Perth made a bid of $357,294; Millenium Construction of Marysville bid $292,689; and Wemp and Smith of Kingston bid $378,983

Township staff will review the bids, and make a recommendation to Council on March 9. Township Chief Administrative Officer Cheryl Robson will meet with the chief building officer and the fire chief this week to go over the bids and determine which one covers all of the projected needs of the project at the best price.

This project has been an active issue throughout the term of the current council, and has been talked about since North Frontenac came into being, and before. Now it seems to be on the verge of becoming a reality. However, it should be noted that council came this close to building a fire hall once before, at a location in the village of Plevna . That plan was scrapped about a year ago, as council decided to reconsider building the fire hall at the township office site.

However, the RFP that was set out at that time was more open ended and yielded a wide range of options, whereas the current RFP process more resembles a straightforward tendering process, with the township providing plans and drawings to the bidding contractors.

One of the main drawbacks at the township office site is a shortage of water. A new well was drilled last September, yielding another 3.5 gallons per minute in water supply for the office, garage, and the new fire hall. Council feels that this addresses water shortage issues.

This is also the final year of the current council. Municipal elections will be held in November.

“We will have the fire hall issue dealt with before summer comes and the municipal election begins in earnest,” Mayor Maguire assured the News late last year.

Council already has significant resources set aside for this project, having budgeted $150,000 in 2005 to go along with a commitment of $100,000 from the Clar/Mil Fire Ladies fundraising efforts over many years.

The only thing that could have put a stop to the project at this point, according to observers of council, would have been bids that were so high that it would cause budgeting problems for council. The three bids that were received, as divergent as they are, all fall within a price range that council was hoping to see.