Frontenac County campus redevelopment

E.S. Fox Ltd. work crews remove old HVAC equipment from the roof of Fairmount Home, October 25.
Crews from contractor E.S. Fox Ltd. replaced large HVAC components on the roof of Fairmount Home this week.

The four-day operation involved the presence of heavy trucks for the delivery and removal of large HVAC components and the use of large cranes for lifting equipment on and off the roof.

There was some disruption to staff parking areas during the work but minimal disruption to residents or their visitors. The heavy equipment-lift is just one part of the larger project which is expected to be complete near the end of the year.

When complete, the upgrades will reduce operating costs for taxpayers, reduce environmental impact for future generations, improve indoor air quality for residents, and help to further extend the useful service life of the buildings.

Total cost for the upgrades is $1.4 million. $1.2 million comes from the COVID-19 Resilience Stream of the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program. $86,000 comes from the Frontenac County Capital Replacement Reserve. $184,000 will come from the City of Kingston.

The Fairmount HVAC project is just one of the improvements project underway at Frontenac County campus in Glenburnie. Also underway is a $5-million joint administration facility renovation build and a $2.5-million Frontenac Paramedics station.

Read more about this and other ongoing Frontenac County campus redevelopment projects HERE.

Once complete, the Fairmount HVAC improvement project will reduce operating costs for taxpayers, reduce environmental impact for future generations, improve indoor air quality for residents, and help to further extend the useful service life of the buildings.

Crews lift heavy equipment from the roof of Fairmount Home (left) construction is underway on the joint administration facility (foreground right) and the area for the new Frontenac Paramedics station is prepared for construction (top). 25 October, 2022.

Kingston and the Islands MP Mark Gerretsen, Lanark-Frontenac-Kingston MP ScottReid, Frontenac Paramedics Chief Gale Chevalier, and Frontenac County Warden DenisDoyle break ground on the new Frontenac Paramedics station, October 12.

Glenburnie, ON – Elected officials, honoured guests, and members of the media gathered at Frontenac County campus at 2069 Battersea Rd. today to kick-off construction of a new Frontenac Paramedics station.

The new two-bay paramedics station will add capacity for Frontenac Paramedics to accommodate more ambulances and on-duty paramedics as demand for service continues to grow. The new station, located five minutes north of the Montreal St exit at Highway 401, will primarily serve the Rideau Heights and Montreal St. areas of Kingston, the Highway 401 corridor, and the rapidly developing areas of the Township of South Frontenac.

“Congratulations to the County for such incredible work in maintaining top-notch level of paramedic services not just in Kingston but in rural areas as well,” says Kingston and the Islands MP Mark Gerretsen. “We truly are grateful for the incredible service you’ve provided over the years.”

A 2019 submission to Frontenac County Council by international emergency services consultancy firm Operational Research in Health Ltd. (ORH) projected that 408 additional weekly ambulance hours will be required by Frontenac Paramedics by 2029. That means three new ambulances and crews and one extra spare ambulance will be needed to maintain service levels as populations grow larger and skew older. The new station will help equip Frontenac Paramedics to accommodate those resources.

“We on Frontenac County Council continue to advocate for fast, reliable, and effective paramedic services for residents of all areas, rural and urban,” says Frontenac County Warden Denis Doyle. “This new base is just one example of that work completed in Frontenac over the last decade to equip paramedics for the future.”

Costs for the new station will be shared between Frontenac County and the City of Kingston.

“This new base is just one of the many steps we’re taking to ensure that Frontenac Paramedics is staffed and equipped to meet the new realities,” says Frontenac Paramedics Chief Gale Chevalier. “We appreciate the support of Frontenac County Council.”

It is expected that the new base will be ready in the spring. More information about the new Frontenac Paramedics station project can be found here: https://bit.ly/3LUK3Yt.

See the new station site plan here: https://engagefrontenac.ca/32114/widgets/131130/documents/86728

More information about Frontenac County Council’s and Frontenac Paramedics’ plan for the future can be found here: https://bit.ly/3dQz7OX

Cataraqui Conservation and Frontenac County have agreed to a plan to share joint administrative facilities in an expanded and fully renovated building, now under construction at 2069 Battersea Rd. in Glenburnie.

“With this new partnership, Frontenac County and Cataraqui Conservation staff, councillors, and board members will have access to badly needed modern and energy-efficient offices and workspaces,” says Frontenac County Warden, Denis Doyle. “It’s a way for our two organizations to collaborate and to share some costs and resources while providing the most efficient delivery of services possible to our clients and constituents. Sharing meeting rooms and entrances has the added benefit of lowering our overall carbon footprint.”

“Cataraqui Conservation has long outgrown our administrative building,” says Cataraqui Conservation Board Chair, Paul McAuley. “By working together with our Frontenac County colleagues, we will better equip staff for the future while saving valuable financial resources for the increasingly critical work of environmental protection and conservation.”

The Cataraqui Conservation administrative building, now in use at the Little Cataraqui Creek Conservation Area off Perth Rd in Glenburnie, was built in 1974. It is inadequate for Cataraqui Conservation needs and requires structural repairs. The Frontenac County administrative offices at 2069 Battersea Rd. includes a lightly renovated century farmhouse and is similarly inadequate for its purpose. To repair and renovate both administrative buildings would be much more expensive and less efficient than combining resources to build and share a single new, modern building with flexible, collaborative space to meet the needs of both organizations.

Construction has already begun. The project is expected to take a little more than a year to complete at a cost of $4.5 million.