St. Albert RCMP are no closer to having more space after city council deferred a decision until it can do a more thorough review of the options.
The police have been asking for more space for months and on Monday city administration presented council with a recommendation to purchase property for a satellite office. But council instead chose to refer the issue to the standing committee on finance, which meets on Monday.
At the root of the hesitation is a dissatisfaction on council that the Hemingway Centre — the former RCMP headquarters downtown — hasn’t been fully considered as a potential overflow facility.
“Council is believing that the Hemingway Centre is a potential option and we didn’t get all the information last night to rule Hemingway out,” said Mayor Nolan Crouse.
He, along with the other members of council, supported a motion by Coun. Roger Lemieux to revisit the issue on Monday, when councillors will be able to discuss the RCMP building in the context of the city’s 10-year capital plan.
“We’re going to have to decide which is the priority. Do we do away with doing something else to give the RCMP what they need?” Lemieux said.
The RCMP detachment is operating above capacity and the police need an additional 4,100 square feet to accommodate their current operations, say city and police administration. Future growth will see that need increase to an additional 10,000 sq. ft. by 2021, the city projects.
The city’s administrators don’t see as much potential in the Hemingway Centre as council does.
The aging building contains asbestos and renovating it into a modern office would require gutting it and redeveloping the interior at a cost between $1.5 million and $2 million, estimated Chris Jardine, the city’s general manager of community and protective services.
According to city administration, the 5,500-sq.-ft. building wouldn’t provide the police with enough space beyond five years and would take two years to renovate.
“Our need is now. We’re not crying wolf,” Jardine said.
Lemieux’s preferred solution would be to renovate the Hemingway Centre for RCMP use for the next five years until the city can plan a more permanent solution for police space. When the police eventually move out, the building will provide the city with a modern space to house other departments or agencies displaced by a space crunch that’s affecting city hall, Lemieux said.
“It just makes so much sense to me … that’s probably the one I’ll push for,” Lemieux said.
