County Approves New Firehall for Shinimicas

Tenders for a new Shinimicas firehall should be issued soon. Cumberland Council agreed last night to get moving on the replacement for the hall and trucks lost in a fire last April.

Firefighters had hoped to have a new hall under construction by now. Despite promises by municipal staff to the former county council, the matter did not get fast-tracked.

It seems the issue got bogged down over who would own the new facility. The county claimed the new building would be municipal property, while the fire department, which owned the former hall and provided the insurance proceeds toward the new building, expected to retain their interest.

The dispute was never made public but seems to have been resolved as noted in a press release issued last night after the council meeting.

The release said, “The Municipality and the Shinimicas Fire Department will co-own the building and property until the mortgage is paid off and then ownership will be transferred to the Fire Department.”

Council also agreed the tender call would be based on the specs provided by the fire department and any variation required would be discussed with the firefighters.

The department has already replaced their personal protective and fire fighting gear, have borrowed trucks, and continue to serve. However, their equipment is housed throughout the community as they wait for a new firehall to call home.

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