After many considerations and inspections, the Estevan Fire Department will be moving into a new location. 

During the city council meeting of 2017, the topic of buying the lot for a new fire hall for the department was brought up. It was revealed that the lot itself will cost about $2.3 million. The new home of the department will be in the old Murray GM building on 13th Avenue. 

"We did a lot of consulting with other fire departments of similar construction, design and size and took into account our needs in forty or fifty years. When this particular property became available, we inspected the area. It's very usable and an ideal for the location, and it accomodates what we are looking for," noted Fire Chief Dale Feser. 

Another benefit that this lot has is the fact that they can store all of their equipment on the same lot. Currently, they have a separate lot for other apparatus in the City Yard. This lot gives them ease of access to all of their equipment, which in turn, yields better response time for when there is an active situation.  

"When we take a look at the location, it is key because it is at the central portion of the city. It allows us to quick egress and access points within the city, as well as the outdoor corridors like the North, South, East and West access and the bypass straight north."

"At the end of the day, we wanted to make sure that this is a fiscally-responsible decision with taxpayer dollars. Thereby, by buying an existing property and doing a retrofit, we're going to be saving between $5-7 million opposed to the new construction idea," reassured Feser. 

With that in mind, there are ideas up in the air to what people can expect out of the relocation. 

"What we really want to do is do the best that we can with this building, really showcase and make it a gem for the city and for the Fire Services in the province." 

The showroom located at the front of the building will be transformed into a little museum in the future. the aim for the museum is to show how the Estevan Fire Department progressed over the years, as well as show off any antiques in their possession. 

In terms of the old office, there are some options in place. 

"The Estevan Police Service is expanding and growing, so they may take a look at this and use it for some of their operational needs as well. Our Roads and Drainage division can use the area in the City Yard that we are leaving behind. There is also a piece of land set aside at the north-end of the city for building a new fire hall, which can now be sold for other projects or commercial purposes, which can help us recover costs as well," concluded Feser. 

Overall, there is no word of when they will start the procedure of retrofitting the lot, but it's fair to say that the department is excited to move in.