Residents, neighbours, and passers-by to the Fire Station No. 2 at 4595 Elk Lake Drive will have begun to see exciting changes to the site in the past five months. These changes reflect the beginning of a multi-year construction period and the fulfillment of the District’s capital investment priority to public safety in the Royal Oak Community with the construction of a new Fire Station. 

Construction Update – October 2026

Since building construction began more than two years ago, the following milestones have been reached:

• Building structure, envelope, mechanical and electrical systems, and interiors are 98% complete.
• Operations and training support facilities are 90% complete.
• Viewmont Avenue infrastructure and new cul de-sac is now complete.

Upcoming project milestones include:

• Testing of on-site systems.

• Offsite civil works installation:
• Royal Oak Drive and Elk Lake Drive are receiving new curbing and traffic controls, which reflect recently approved designs and specifications received through Ministry of Transportation and Transit (MOTT) reviews.
• Elk Lake Drive is a Saanich maintained street while the section of Royal Oak Drive in front of the fire hall is a provincially maintained street.
• This work, requiring several weeks of road work with on-site traffic management, is scheduled to be completed by Q1 2027.
• BC Transit services and bus stops will remain fully operational while road and curbside works are undertaken and new amalgamated bus stop locations are constructed on Royal Oak Drive eastbound, adjacent to their current locations.
• Saanich Fire Department apparatus equipment will not be deployed out of the new facility onto Royal Oak Drive until all off-site civil works are completed.
• Partial building occupancy is scheduled to be complete by the end of October 2026.
• Removal and relocation of the Interim Accommodation Unit (temporary fire hall along Elk Lake Drive) will occur in early November 2026
• Finished landscaping on-site, including public pathway and Elk Lake Drive and Royal Oak Drive street-side improvements are planned for Q4 2026 to Q1 2027.
• Public art installation and public opening event is planned for Q1 2027.

Project Information

The new version of Fire Station #2 will be 23,476 square feet, up from 3,800, and accommodate up to 10 fire fighters, rather than the current 5, and 8 vehicles rather than the current 2. A fire fighter training facility will be part of the development. 

The building will be built to very high energy performance standards (net zero carbon building, LEED Gold and Energy Step Code level 2) and constructed of mass timber.

The provision of emergency services - fire suppression and emergency response - will be greatly improved with a facility that more properly stores Fire Department apparatus (much of the fleet currently is not stored according to standards). The increase of staff complement for future growth anticipates the needs of residents and visitors in the growing northern areas of the District. Additionally, the facility will play a significant role in helping Saanich achieve its 2050 reduction targets.