City of Cranbrook council Feb. 27 pre-approved an updated budget of $3,040,724 for the RCMP building design and renovation.

At a Feb. 8 special council meeting a request to increase the RCMP building renovation was considered by council, after city staff reported that due to the spike in building costs since the original approval for the project in 2022, additional funds are needed to complete the project.

“The proposed renovation could expand the life of the current building by up to 20-25 years and, significant investments have already been made to the detachment cell block that would be lost in a move to a new building. In addition, a move to a new building would also create additional costs to renovate the detachment building to have it as useable office space,” noted a report to council by Tony Hetu of the Public Works Department.

Council approved the updated project budget of $540,724 for design work and $2.5 million for construction to allow city staff to continue with the design process prior to adoption of the five-year financial plan bylaw.

e-KNOW file photo

e-KNOW

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