By mid-2017, all of the emergency services covering the South-West Limburg area will move to a brand new logistical and administrative complex bringing together the fire service, 112 call centre and security forces. The benefits of this project include improved efficiency, cost savings due to synergies between the different services, stricter sustainability rules and, last but not least, response teams that can arrive at the scene of an incident more quickly thanks to a better location away from the city centre. To finance the fire station, Hasselt has the backing of Belfius and the European Investment Bank's "Smart Cities & Sustainable Development" programme. The goal of this cofinancing programme is to support Belgian local authorities in implementing smart, inclusive and sustainable projects.
Our cities and municipalities are facing a number of challenges, which is why Hasselt has been working for several years towards becoming a "city of the future". It has applied a clear vision and a carefully thought out, all-encompassing approach where each project must complement the others: from culture, housing, healthcare, mobility and the environment to education and employment.
Principle of timely, appropriate assistance: fire service, 112, security response team and police in a single location
The existing Hasselt fire station building did not meet the requirements of a modern fire service. Its location in the city centre was not ideal, while the dilapidated and poorly insulated building was no longer suitable for a fire service comprising almost 100 volunteers and more than 80 professional firefighters.
This was the reasoning behind the decision to build a dedicated new complex for the emergency services in an out-of-town location between the Herkenrodesingel, prison and Albert canal.
This state-of-the-art, low-energy complex will include a six-storey central administrative building shared by the fire service, 112 call centre and security forces (with total floorspace of over 20 000 m2). There will be a gym, sports hall and canteen open to all the emergency services personnel on the site, which will also include a separate police station building by 2018 at the latest. A 118-space, two-storey underground car park is also planned, together with two annexes for the fire engine vehicles, secondary equipment and logistical and maintenance facilities (service station and car wash).
By bringing together the fire service, emergency services call centre, security forces and police in a single location, Hasselt aims to facilitate operational improvements to the various divisions and develop a site specifically for the emergency services in line with the principle of timely, appropriate assistance. Practicality and efficiency are clearly at the heart of this project, as is improved and faster responsiveness via a larger number of access routes. Particular attention was also paid to the insulation of the building (K-value: 27, E-level: 54) and solar panels with an annual capacity of 22 316 kWh will be installed on the roof of the fire station. As far as possible, the fire service will use rainwater to fill the fire engine tanks.
The total cost of the fire station* stands at EUR 24m, which will be fully covered by a "Smart Cities & Sustainable Development" loan signed with Belfius and the European Investment Bank. The preferential European funding conditions mean that interest charges can be substantially reduced, delivering a win-win situation for city finances and local people.
Belfius/EIB "Smart Cities & Sustainable Development" Programme
Recently awarded a prize by the British magazine World Finance, the "Smart Cities & Sustainable Development" financing programme is intended to make EUR 400m available to local authorities in Belgium for the implementation of "smart and sustainable" projects in line with the "Smart Cities" approach and with a particular emphasis on mobility, urban development and/or energy efficiency.
The objective of this programme is to minimise borrowing costs for municipalities, CPASs (Public Social Action Centres) and inter-municipal utilities in order to support them in their innovative and sustainable approach. The EIB and Belfius are each providing half of the funds.
Two years after the launch of the programme, loans have already been granted to around 40 projects, benefiting a total of over a million inhabitants, e.g. the CNG plant of the inter-municipal waste management utility IMOG in Harelbeke, "near-zero energy" sheltered housing in Shelle, the renovation of Deinze and Harelbeke town centre and the development of La Croisette in Dinant. A further 150 applications are currently being examined, clearly showing that the "Smart Cities" programme is going from strength to strength in Belgium.
Delighted with the success of the "Smart Cities & Sustainable Development" programme, EIB Vice-President Pim van Ballekom remarked: "The 'Smart Cities & Sustainable Development' programme is a first for Belgium but also for Europe. It aims to provide real impetus to the 'Smart Cities' initiative so that this approach becomes the new standard for building the towns and cities of the future. 'Smart, inclusive and sustainable' projects such as those advocated by the EU's Europe 2020 strategy will be drivers of growth for these entities for the benefit of their citizens."
Dirk Gyselinck, member of Belfius Bank's Management Board, added: "Regardless of their size, towns have no other choice but to become smart in order to remain attractive. Even though there is no shortage of ideas, projects still too often come up against the problem of funding when it comes to putting these ideas into practice. It is precisely to facilitate the implementation of the numerous 'smart' projects that are currently in the pipeline or at an embryonic stage all over the country that Belfius has developed the 'Smart Cities & Sustainable Development' programme with the EIB."
For further information about Belfius's "Smart Cities" strategy: https://www.belfius.be/smartcities.
* The Belfius and EIB loan is solely for the fire station. The financing does not cover the police station and the Régie des bâtiments section (security forces, CIC and CDRGA).