Greater Sudbury city council votes to close some fire halls, keep others open if they get enough recruits

After years of debate, including several hours Tuesday night, Greater Sudbury city council has decided to shut down some fire halls in the outlying areas.

That includes the stations in Falconbridge, which will merge with Garson, and the fire brigades in Val Caron and Hanmer,which will be consolidated into a new fire hall in Val Therese.

The most passionate opposition to the city's plans, voiced loudly during a round of public consultations over the winter and spring, came from the rural communities of Skead and Beaver Lake.

Council has voted to keep those two fire halls open, including $120,000 in necessary repairs to the Skead station, as long as they can recruit enough part-time firefighters, often called "volunteers."

Fire departments across the continent are struggling to train and keep new volunteers, and in Greater Sudbury, that's been a problem for years, with most fire halls in the outlying areas staffed byonly a handful of firefighters, including just three in Beaver Lake.

City staff suggested that Skeadbe given a target of 15 firefighters, but NatalieLabbe, the councillor for the area, called that "unfair" and "setting Skead up for failure," especially since the community has already signed up 11 new recruits.

"And it's because of their concerted efforts and desperation to keep their station open," she said.

"There's no trust from the community of Skead to have the city take the lead to ensure their volunteer firefighter numbers stay up."

Joseph Nicholls, the city's chief of fire and paramedic services, says for years there have been efforts to recruit new volunteers, but the chronic shortages remain.

"They have not been able to sustain any numbers. I have to ask the question: What's different? What's going to be different over the coming days, weeks, months, then has been over the last years?" Nicholls asked city council.

For Beaver Lake, the city is also exploring an agreement with the neighbouring town of Nairn Centre to have their firefighters respond to fires in the western reaches of Greater Sudbury.

"We're going to leave an area that's unprotected. So we're on a mass hunt for volunteers," said city Coun.Michael Vagnini, whose ward includes Beaver Lake.

City Coun. Al Sizersaid people in his New Sudbury ward are tired of paying for services they don't use and was heckled by citizens in the gallery, as well as Vagnini.

"We're not pulling the service away from our residents. Yes the service may be different, but we're not telling them they won't have fire services," said Sizer.

"I'm not trying to shortchange any of the residents of this great city, but sometimes we can't be the end all to everything in this community."

After themarathon four-hour meeting Tuesdaynight, council ran out of time to discuss four other proposed fire department changes, including in the Minnow Lake and Long Lake neighbourhoods, that will now be moved to the meeting agenda for next month.