New Craigleith Fire Hall Construction | Town of The Blue Mountains, ON

On this page:
1. Project Updates
2. Public Consultation
3. Rendering and Map of Project Area
4. Progress Photos

Fire Hall #2 located at 796338 Grey Road 19 in Craigleith was originally built in 1989. The building is beginning to show its age, and the Town’s 2022 Fire Master Plan identified that the station was due for replacement. Town Staff have identified a parcel of town-owned land south of 796511 Grey Road 19 that would be a suitable location for a new fire hall. This facility would be built to meet the needs of the expanding population and growth in tourism activity in this area. The existing Fire Hall is planned to be retrofitted as a satellite operations centre for the Town’s Parks and Trails, and Roads and Drainage Divisions. Staff are also looking to incorporate touch-down workspaces for all Town staff to use in the Craigleith area.

The project budget will be funded by the Community Services Asset Replacement Reserve Fund, Roads Equipment Asset Replacement Reserve Fund, Fire Asset Replacement Reserve Fund and Fire Development Charges.

Why Now?
The Fire Department has outgrown their existing space in Craigleith, and requires a larger facility to meet the needs of the growing year-round and seasonal activity in the service area.

Project Updates

July 24, 2026 - Preparation for slab-on-grade concrete pour

LAURIN has completed installation of the concrete curb around the building, and are currently working on installation of the road base in preparation for base asphalt. They are also getting the floor ready for the slab-on-grade concrete pour. The subcontractor who will be completing the mass timber framing is scheduled to mobilize to the site around the middle of August.

July 10, 2026 - Summer site update
LAURIN is making good progress on the new Craigleith Fire Hall. They're currently in the final stages of wrapping up the water and wastewater service connections at County Road 19, and expect to place the concrete curb throughout the site shortly. Once the curbs have been placed, they will begin building the road base for the site in preparation for base asphalt. Site trailers will be relocated within the site as well over the next few weeks.
May 4, 2026 - Spring site update
Wet spring conditions have delayed recent progress on the new Fire Hall causing the project to fall slightly behind schedule. The Town is actively working with the contractor to look at how remaining scheduled work can be optimized to make up for the lost time. However, now that site conditions have dried up following the spring thaw, the Town's contractor has resumed foundation excavation and concrete work. LAURIN is currently expecting to wrap up the foundation work in late May or early June, and then will begin to erect the building frame.
March 10, 2026 - Status update Staff Report
A Staff Report with an update on Facilities capital projects - including the construction of the new Craigleith Fire Hall - is scheduled to be presented to Committee of the Whole on Monday, March 16. The report provides an update on the status of the project, along with the engineering and construction budget spent to date.
View Report
January 14, 2025 - Continuation of foundation and servicing
The LAURIN Group continues to work through the winter weather on the new Craigleith Fire Hall. The current schedule calls for foundation work to continue until mid February. This includes excavating, placing formwork and pouring foundation walls, piers and footings. LAURIN is also progressing with the installation of the water and sanitary services for the building.
November 18, 2025 - Foundation excavation and site servicing work
The Town's contractor has completed excavation for the building's foundation, and are beginning the process of installing the water, wastewater and stormwater services for the new Fire Hall.
Staff Report CFS.26.031 is scheduled to be presented to Committee of the Whole on Monday, June 29. The report provides an update on the budget and construction status. Staff are looking for Council approval to accept a financing package from the Federation of Canadian Municipalities Green Municipal Fund consisting of a loan of up to $8.6 million and a grant of up to $1.3 million.
View Staff Report
The Town is proposing a new telecommunications tower be installed on the site of the new Craigleith Fire Hall site. The tower will be freestanding to provide point-to-point connectivity for two-way base station radio connections for Fire Department communications, and will also provide point-to-point connectivity to the Craigleith Wastewater Treatment Plant, Happy Valley Reservoir and former Fire Hall #2. A Public Meeting will be held on Tuesday, June 23 at 9:30 a.m. to gather feedback from the community on the proposal. More details can be found in the Notice of Public Meeting linked below.
View Notice of Public Meeting
September 25, 2025 - LAURIN Group Awarded Construction Contract
The LAURIN Group has been awarded the construction contract for the new Craigleith Fire Hall. LAURIN specializes in institutional, commercial, industrial and multi-family residential projects, and has provided construction services throughout Ontario for companies including GO Transit, Hydro One and Canada Post. Contractors from LAURIN have arrived on site and begun preparation work.
View Full Press Release
June 24, 2025 - Approval to increase budget for construction tender
Staff Report CFS.25.036 was presented to Council on Monday, June 24. The report requested that Council approve an increase to the project budget of $3,338,073 in order to reflect the final tendered costs. This request was approved in a vote by Council. Once the construction contract has been finalized, staff will be scheduling a kick-off meeting with the contractor. Following this meeting, an updated schedule will be available. Prior to construction, a notice will be mailed to surrounding residents and posted to the project page with more information for residents.
Council review of the Staff Report begins at the 5:25:15 mark of the meeting recording.
View Meeting Recording
June 6, 2025 - Financial update regarding tender
Staff Report CFS.25.036 is scheduled to be presented at a Special Meeting of Council on Tuesday, June 10. The report requests that Council approve an increase to the project budget of $3,338,073 in order to reflect the final tendered costs. The current remaining budget is $12,500,000, and the lowest compliant bid received was $13,768,249. The requested increase to the project budget will account for this shortfall, and will also cover additional costs including IT infrastructure, furnishings, additional engineering services and a contingency fund.
View Staff Report
April 22, 2025 - Construction tender open for bids
May 23, 2025 - The deadline for bids has been extended until June 3, 2025. This has been updated below.
The construction tender for the new Craigleith Fire Hall is now open on the Town's Bids and Tenders website. Five contractors were identified through the pre-qualification process, and final bids will be accepted until June 3, 2025. Once a contractor is retained, they will provide a more detailed schedule for the work and the Town will send out a construction newsletter. Ongoing updates will be posted to the project web page as information becomes available.
March 14, 2025 - Staff Report with project status update
Staff Report CFS.25.017 is scheduled to be presented to Committee of the Whole on Monday, March 17. The report provides an update on the estimated construction costs for the new Craigleith Fire Hall, and requests direction from Council for staff to proceed with applying for the Federation of Canadian Municipalities grant and loan.
View Staff Report
February 28, 2025 - Land clearing to begin week of March 3
Contractors are scheduled to mobilize to the new Craigleith Fire Hall site the week of March 3 to complete brush cutting and clearing. MacPherson Builders will be completing some additional clearing on an adjacent site at the same time in anticipation of future development. A draft tree restoration and landscaping plan for the Fire Hall site has been completed and can be reviewed at the link below. As part of the construction plan, the Town will restore extensive naturalized areas across the site, enhancing privacy and preserving the natural heritage. This initiative, combined with previously designated protected lands, will help safeguard local ecosystems and ensure their long-term sustainability.
The Town is in the process of pre-qualifying contractors for construction of the new Fire Hall, and expects to award the final construction tender before the end of April 2025.
View Draft Tree Restoration Plan
January 16, 2025 - Notice of planned land clearing
Brush cutting and clearing activities are expected to take place at the new Fire Station #2 site before the end of March 2025. The Town will be adhering to all required regulations related to these activities. Once specific dates are known, an update will be made to the Town’s project web page. Mailed letters have been sent to owners of abutting properties.
View Letter
September 11, 2024 - Upcoming site work for geotechnical investigations
The Town will be moving forward with geotechnical efforts over the coming weeks in support of building the new Craigleith Fire Hall. This work will include localized site clearing, preparation and drilling.
August 22, 2024 - Design process initiated
The engineering services contract for the replacement of Fire Hall #2 has been awarded to J.L. Richards & Associates. The Town's project team is currently in the process of reviewing potential site plans and possible facility layouts in consultation with Fire Department staff, and J.L. Richards has begun completing property studies and assessments.
April 2, 2024 - Funding approved through Town Budget
The 2024 Town Budget was approved by Council on April 2, 2024. This included $13,300,000 for engineering, contract services, contingency and retrofits related to the new Craigleith Fire Hall Construction project. Staff are looking at a new build on Grey Road 19, with the current Fire Hall being retrofitted into a satellite operations centre for the Town's Parks and Trails, and Roads and Drainage Departments.
View Town Budget
October 16, 2023 - Memorandum of Understanding with Home Farm Development
Staff Report FAF.23.147 was presented to Committee of the Whole at their meeting on October 16, 2023. This report provided an update on the opportunity to pursue an Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with McPherson Homes regarding a land swap, and specifically noted that an enhanced and larger Fire Hall had been found to be the best use of the town-owed property on Grey Road 19. Committee voted 6-0 in favour of the staff recommendations and directed staff to expedite the process through Planning and Development as appropriate. This was adopted by Council at their meeting on October 30, 2023.
View Staff Report
May 3, 2022 - Adoption and endorsement of Fire Master Plan
Staff Report CSOPS.22.098 was presented to Committee of the Whole at their meeting on May 3, 2022. This report presented the final Fire Master Plan and recommended that Council endorse the 38 recommendations identified in the master plan. These items will be included in future budgets for consideration. The final plan included many recommendations related to elements to be included or considered in the construction of the new Craigleith Fire Hall #2. These include:
- Incorporation of a dedicated fitness room
- Installation of a permanently-fixed standby generator
- Construction of a negative pressure storage room for bunker gear
View Staff Report
June 29, 2021 - Staff Report regarding potential location for multi-use facility
Staff Report FAF.21.106 was presented to Committee of the Whole on June 29, 2021. The report requested that Council endorse, in principle, the use of the old Board of Education property on Grey Road 19 as the preferred potential location for a future Town facility. It also asked Council to authorize staff to initiate a public consultation process to engage the community and local stakeholders. Committee voted 7-0 in favour of the staff recommendations, and this was adopted by Council at their meeting on July 12, 2021.
View Staff Report
June 4, 2021 - Public Information Notice distributed to surrounding residents
Notice was mailed to surrounding property owners regarding the proposed preferred location for a Craigleith Service Area Multi-Use Operations Facility. The letter included more information on the site selection process, and the proposed next steps and timeline for the project.
View Notice

Public Consultation

No Public Meetings or Information Centres are currently scheduled for this project. Anyone interested in receiving more information regarding the project can subscribe to the project email list using the link below.