Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Ambulance Station Project
Backgrounder
Parkland County
53109A Hwy 779
Parkland County AB T7Z 1R1
780-968-8888
inquiries@parklandcounty.com
parklandcounty.com
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Twitter: @Parkland_County
About Parkland County
Parkland County is proud to be a forward-thinking
rural community committed to leading Alberta’s
resurgence of rural living. For generations, people
in our locale have invested in a legacy of agriculture
and environmental stewardship.
exciting, quality and promising future.
Our deeply-rooted connection to our land brought
us together as a community and, since 1969, our
county has been focused on delivering a stable and
effective base of core services and investing in an
We are demonstrating leadership in re-defined
rural living while purposefully and deliberately
continuing to plan for and make investments in our
future.
Today, Parkland County can proudly describe itself
as a vibrant and diverse community of more than
30,000 rural residents living in a peaceful setting
with access to a wide variety of the amenities.
Parkland County Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Ambulance Station Project
Ambulance Service in the Parkland The Situation
County Region
Since 2009, the Alberta economy has been growing
Prior to 2009, municipalities provided ambulance
services through a variety of service models.
Parkland County, along with several other
municipalities, worked to form the Parkland
Ambulance Authority (PAA), a Part 9 company,
to provide ambulance services in the region. The
PAA was located in the Parkland County Services
building, which also houses Public Works and
Animal Control
In 2009, the Alberta Government took over
responsibility for ambulance services and the
PAA was dissolved. Rather than relocating the
ambulance staff and equipment from the County
Services Building, Parkland County leased the
space to Alberta Health Services (AHS), keeping
the station within the region.
steadily, with significant activity in the Parkland
County region. With strong growth comes a need
for additional services – and resources. Both
Parkland County and AHS were feeling the pressure
to grow, but had limited space within the current
physical confines.
Representatives from Parkland County and AHS
met on a number of occasions to discuss options
for both organizations to obtain additional space
for their operations. Unfortunately, while AHS was
in a position to lease space, it did not have the
capacity or mandate to spend capital dollars on
their own station.
The solution
Parkland County’s Chief Administrative Officer,
Mr. Pat Vincent, came forward with a bold idea:
Parkland County could fund the construction of
an ambulance station and lease it to AHS over a
twenty-year period. The cost of financing would
be incorporated into the lease along with a small
return on investment to the County, resulting in a
net zero cost to the taxpayers of Parkland County.
Parkland County Council viewed the concept as
an excellent way to keep an ambulance station in
the region, providing employment and economic
benefit and, most importantly, helping ensure
resident health and safety.
The concept appeared to be a win-win scenario, a
great example of intergovernmental collaboration
and cooperation. As these principles align with
the values in the County’s Strategic Plan, Council
authorized Mr. Vincent to explore the concept
further.
Bringing the vision to reality
The concept was discussed with representatives
from AHS, who believed there was merit in
exploring the idea further to determine if it was
feasible.
The first task was to find a location on which to
construct the building. There were a number of
options available, but the most attractive was a
4.18 acre piece of land owned by the Province and
located next to the County Services Building.
The property was previously used by Alberta
Transportation as a road maintenance yard and,
as a result, was contaminated with salt from road
maintenance operations and road salt storage.
The contamination meant that the land could not
be sold by the Province – but it could be leased.
New construction on the property would also be
permitted, providing the excavated soil remained
on the site.
The land was also located within another
municipality – the Town of Stony Plain – and that
meant Town Council would need to give approval
for Parkland County to construct and own a building
within town limits.
Parkland County met with Alberta Transportation,
Alberta Infrastructure, the Town of Stony Plain,
and local MLAs to determine first if the land was
available and, if it was, if Parkland County could
enter into a lease agreement for the land at a
nominal rate over a period of 20 years for the
purposes of constructing an ambulance station.
Project Summary:
• 14,000 sq ft building
• Five double ambulance bays for up to 10
ambulances
• Estimated total cost: $6.7 million
• Parkland County share: $5.7 million
• Town of Stony Plain share: $1 million
• Construction start: February 2014
• Completion date: Substantially complete
as of November 2014
• Occupancy: early 2015
of the building and share proportionately in the
lease revenue.
Partnership Success
Right from the outset, there was a collaborative
spirit towards the project – everyone was working to
make it happen rather than throwing up obstacles.
Parkland County presented a very innovative
The Partnership
idea, one that hadn’t been done before, and it
Alberta Transportation enthusiastically embraced
could easily have been dismissed at the outset.
the concept as a great use of vacant land, bringing
All partners had an open mind and saw this as an
it to a higher use by partnering with Parkland
opportunity that would benefit everyone.
County and Alberta Health Services.
This innovative idea has become a reality because
The project not only allowed for the development
of leadership and vision. All partners continued to
of an EMS station in a critical location, but also
pursue the concept through some difficulties in
contains existing contamination, resulting in cost
the early stages.
savings for Alberta tax payers.
It took three years for all the negotiations to be
The Town of Stony Plain fully supported the project
finalized and approvals in place. The result is
as they immediately saw the benefits of maintaining
an important health and safety facility that will
an ambulance station within the region.
serve the region for years to come and serves
Stony Plain Council not only granted approval as an example for other partnerships between
for the County to lease land and construct the municipalities and various government agencies
building within its municipality, but also approved throughout the province.
to contribute $1 million towards the construction