The grand opening of the new Trent Hills Emergency Services Base went virtual on Tuesday.
Located in downtown Campbellford in the Municipality of Trent Hills, the base will house operations for both the Trent Hills Fire Department and Northumberland Paramedics on the ground floor, along with the Trent Hills council chambers on the second floor.
The facility at 50 Doxsee Ave. S. will also act as the municipality’s emergency operations centre when required.
A detailed self-directed virtual tour of the building and other highlights are available on Northumberland County’s website. The coronavirus pandemic cancelled plans for an in-person opening, the county says.
“The new Trent Hills Emergency Services Base is a wonderful addition to Campbellford’s downtown core, with the design complementing the aesthetic of the area and the location addressing a strategic priority to enhance public safety through easier access for our first responders to the community’s urban centre,” said Trent Hills Mayor Bob Crate.
“I want to commend the Trent Hills and county teams for delivering this new asset on time and under budget, and welcome our first responders to their new Trent Hills base of operations. The virtual grand opening is a fantastic opportunity for the community to see the end result of this significant inter-municipal collaboration.”
The project followed two years of collaboration and ground broke on the $6.3-million facility in March 2019. The building opened for use last month.
“This shared facility has been highly anticipated by many in the Trent Hills community, and we are very pleased to be able to finally invite residents across the threshold, even if only virtually for now,” said County Warden Bob Sanderson, also mayor of Port Hope.
“While our preference would be to welcome residents to an in-person celebration, our priority is keeping everyone safe during this pandemic, so we’ve worked hard to deliver the next best thing with this virtual grand opening.
“We invite the public to visit the website to explore this new home for our first responders and Trent Hills council chambers until we can welcome everyone on-site in the future when it is once again safe to do so.”
The 17,000-square-foot facility includes:
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- Four bays for fire trucks, emergency response vehicles and equipment
- Three bays for ambulances and paramedic equipment
- A training room and meeting space
- Kitchen and crew room facilities
- Council chambers, with a large horseshoe design for council and gallery seating for up to 40 people
Trent Hills Fire Department Chief Tim Blake says the facility will help modernize fire services.
“After watching the base take shape over the last year, pulling the trucks in on moving day in July was a very meaningful moment for our firefighters,” he said. “This has been a key development in helping to modernize the fire prevention and response services we provide to our community. We are thrilled to be working more closely with our paramedic partners as we jointly strive to enhance first response for the residents of Trent Hills.”
Bill Detlor, chief of Northumberland Paramedics, echoed the sentiment.
“As community requirements evolve, this new base will enable Northumberland Paramedics to advance our mission to deliver industry-leading pre-hospital health care to the community,” he said. “We look forward to opportunities for enhanced collaboration with the fire department to further strengthen quality emergency response.”
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