Waterloo Welcomes New Fire Station

News Release

Waterloo, Ontario, September 7, 2010 – Waterloo’s Eastbridge residents can now benefit from improved services with the grand opening of the first fire station in their neighbourhood. The new station, located at the corner of University Avenue and Woolwich Street, will ensure emergency response times are reduced in the growing Eastbridge area. The station was built to be 25 per cent more energy efficient than a building of similar size, and the City is pursuing a silver level Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification, to recognize these environmentally friendly design features.

“The Government of Canada is proud of this investment in a new fire station for Waterloo,” said Peter Braid, Member of Parliament for Kitchener-Waterloo, on behalf of Canada’s Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities, Chuck Strahl. “Our investment in this environmentally friendly municipal building will allow emergency response times to keep pace with a growing population. This will further enhance the safety and security of residents in the growing neighbourhood of Eastbridge.”

“This is a wonderful day,” added Waterloo Mayor Brenda Halloran. “I’m delighted to celebrate this grand opening with our Waterloo Fire Rescue team and the residents of this City. This is a great step forward for our community and one that couldn’t have been made possible without the tremendous support of the federal government.”

• The 6,000-square-foot station features a number of environmental elements including:
  • water-efficient toilets that receive their water supply from an underground cistern that collects storm water runoff from the roof;
  • bicycle storage and recycling depots that encourage staff to reduce their carbon footprints; and
  • wood from certified sustainable forest resources.

The Government of Canada provided $2,665,989 from the federal Gas Tax Fund, while the remaining $1,031,000 will be covered by municipal development charges. The total project cost is $3,696,989.

The federal Gas Tax Fund provides municipalities with a stable and predictable source of funding for environmentally sustainable municipal infrastructure. Funding is also available for planning projects that contribute to the sustainability of communities and regions.

The Government of Canada extended the Gas Tax Fund to 2014 resulting in $746 million in funding annually for municipal infrastructure in Ontario.

Under the Economic Action Plan, the Government of Canada is allocating $12 billion to infrastructure projects across the country. This is further complemented by an earlier commitment of $33 billion to infrastructure under the Building Canada Plan.

For additional information:

Constituency Office of MP Braid
519-746-1573

Janice Works
Corporate Communications
City of Waterloo
519-747-8731

Infrastructure Canada
613-948-1148

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