First, I want to acknowledge and thank all that have taken the time to reach out to me and the members of Council to share their concerns regarding the proposed site. We've spent the last couple of days speaking to many people about this.
We have heard the concerns of the community. The Lions Park site is no longer under consideration as the site of the NSCC residence. The item will be removed from the agenda of Wednesday's meeting and our staff will have further discussions regarding previously identified alternative sites and other options with Nova Scotia Public Works.
There has been lots of discussion in the community of Springhill about alternative sites and other options. I want to assure residents that other options were discussed with NSCC. For example, the site of the former Springhill Arena and the site of the current Springhill Fire Department were considered.
The Fire Department site was very attractive to NSCC for obvious reasons. However, it was not identified as the preferred site due to the timing of the construction of the new home for the department. A request for proposals has been issued for the design and construction of the new fire department facility. The RFP closes on March 11. If all goes well, we hope to have the department in their new facility this time next year.
The old arena site was also identified as a potential site. While certainly within a short distance of the campus, it was not NSCC's first choice.
Finally, my concern all along has been that the Municipality in general and the community of Springhill in particular does not lose this extraordinary opportunity to ensure the future sustainability of the Cumberland Campus, boost the economy of the community and increase available housing in a time when appropriate housing is scarce and unaffordable for many.
I have been in discussions over the last couple of days with our MLA Minister Tory Rushton on this issue. He has assured me that the Government of Nova Scotia is committed to building this facility in Springhill and that provincial officials will work with the Municipality to identify the most appropriate site.