By Ruby Pratka
Local Journalism Initiative
Dunham Mayor Pierre Janecek is attempting to reassure citizens that the town’s new proposed fire station will cost less than anticipated after more than 300 people signed a register calling for a referendum on a planned $7.9-million loan to finance the project.
On Dec. 12, 327 residents signed a register calling for a vote. On Jan. 14, rather than moving forward with the referendum, councillors took the proposed loan off the table. Janecek told the BCN he expects councillors to vote on a new, smaller proposed loan by the end of March.
“The first bid we had a year ago was $7.7 million, and when we did a new estimate, it was $1.4 million less, so we’re restarting the project,” Janecek said, adding that lower interest rates and an unexpectedly high number of competitive bids have helped bring costs down. He also expects to defer some planned infrastructure projects, including the purchase of a new fire truck, to be able to move ahead with the fire station project without raising taxes.
“Our old station is obsolete, and it’s a question of time before the CNESST [Quebec workplace safety administration] condemns it, because we don’t have a decontamination room and our trucks are parked like sardines. It’s a converted car garage which was never intended to serve as a fire station,” he said, adding that a fire truck clipped the concrete wall of the station after a recent call and caused further damage. “If the old fire station was adequate, we wouldn’t need another.”
The fire station will be “larger than the one we have” and feature modern decontamination and washing facilities. Janecek argued that the proposed new station would be “good for the next 50 years” and the presence of an up-to-code fire station would bring residents’ insurance premiums down while having a minimal impact on residents’ tax bills. He anticipated that additional residential developments planned in the next few years would also reduce the burden on current taxpayers.
“Some people understand what we’re doing and some don’t, and that’s a shame,” said Janecek, a third-term mayor who hasn’t decided whether he’s running again. “We explain the best we can, and some people are satisfied and some aren’t. You can’t please everybody.”
Janecek said the project was expected to go ahead as originally planned on a slightly smaller budget. “The only thing that is changing is the amount [of the loan].” He said councillors would need to vote on the loan by the end of March so the municipality could apply for a provincial grant covering 73 per cent of the cost.
He said that if the town’s grant request and the new loan are both approved, construction on the new fire station should begin this summer and finish in 2026.