Plans to construct a nearly $10.8 million EMS headquarters in Sarnia are another step closer to reality.
Lambton County Council has approved a recommendation to refer the project to 2025 budget deliberations.
It's proposed the new facility -- to be funded through debenture and reserves -- be constructed within the Western Sarnia Lambton Research Park and use adjacent space available at the research park.
The report said by using the existing commercial floorspace -- for administrative and training facilities -- staff were able to reduce the footprint of the new building by 10,000 square feet and lower construction costs by about $3 million.
The new building, in the area of Highway 402 and Highway 40, would house EMS operations including vehicles, emergency responders and storage.
Lambton EMS Manager Stephen Turner previously told Sarnia News Today that 9-1-1 calls for ambulance service have increased 5.6 per cent each year for the past five years, and six per cent increases are expected annually for the next five years.
He has also suggested coverage could be enhanced by creating a station in Camlachie and moving the Grand Bend station a bit further southwest toward the Pinery.
Lambton County Council will also consider the associated costs of adding 12 hours of daily daytime service in Sarnia for 2025.
That would include $322,250 in capital costs for an ambulance and equipment, to be funded through EMS capital reserves.
Architectural renderings of the proposed facility were shared at Lambton County Council's meeting on February 5.
The 2025 budget will be considered March 5.
Lambton EMS operates out of ten stations, with 82 full-time 9-1-1 paramedics and eight community paramedics, 70 part-time paramedics, plus supervisors and administrative staff.