Photo: District of Peachland

Cost estimates for a new Peachland fire hall have risen 30% since voters approved spending $17.5 million on the project in a 2022 referendum,.

The municipality would have to raise taxes or dig considerably into financial reserves to pay the higher costs, deputy administrator Cory Labrecque told council on Tuesday.

Instead, the municipality will now look into partnering with a developer to get the 13th Street project done as a mixed-use development

“The mixed uses may include residential, commercial, retail and office space,” said Labrecque. “It may also include the potential for municipal office space, BC Ambulance, community policing and an RCMP office.”

Peachland will put out a request seeking interested developers. “The district should know within six months if a private-public partnership is a viable option for constructing a new firehall,” Labrecque said.

Peachland is not coming up with a new idea.

Several councillors noted Victoria’s new fire hall, which opened in 2023, is a mixed-use building with the firehall at ground level and eight floors of housing above. Mayor Patrick Van Minsel and Coun. Alena Glasman visited the project last year.

“One of the main concerns is that we own our building. That’s crucial for us,” said Van Minsel, noting Victoria officials are happy with their arrangement.

“The new public safety building was built under an agreement with local developer Dalmatian Developments Limited Partnership,” the City of Victoria’s website explains.

“The fire hall is part of a new 12-storey, mixed-use development that includes 130 units of purpose-built, affordable homes for low- and moderate-income seniors, families and individuals, and operated by Pacifica Housing.

“The City owns the first three levels of the building where the Victoria Fire Department operates. With funding from BC Housing, Pacifica Housing owns and operates the top eight storeys of the building. There is also a single level of commercial office space.”

BC Emergency Health Services will lease part of the building to house two ambulances.

“Residents seem to enjoy living above the firehall,” said Labrecque. The fire department uses signal lights instead of alarms when entering and exiting the hall, he said.

“It’s a stunning creation,” said Glasman of the Victoria building.

Photo: City of Victoria

Victoria, B.C.'s new fire hall, opened in 2023, with residential housing above it.