PUSLINCH – A Puslinch resident and former longtime firefighter has pushed for a part of the north west area of the township to be included in an agreement with Cambridge to have its city fire department handle calls in the area.
It’s something Roger Will said he’s done with every new mayor the township has had but nothing has happened, including at a recent meeting where Puslinch council approved a three-year contract to continue an agreement as is with Cambridge’s fire department.
As of now, Puslinch and Cambridge have an agreement where the city’s fire department handles calls for a portion of the township around Puslinch Lake with a boundary of Townline Road, Highway 401, Sideroad 10 and Gore Road.
Will said he wants this area extended north of the 401 as he feels the area is too far away from Puslinch’s only fire station next to town hall on Wellington Road 34 near Brock Road, meanwhile Cambridge is just a short distance away.
“It’s six minutes versus 30 minutes, that’s the other big issue, it's basically a threat to life,” Will said, adding the response time would not meet the guidelines set out by the township’s establishing and regulating bylaw.
Will is a former volunteer firefighter with Puslinch, joining in 1986 and promoted to fire prevention officer and later chief training officer in the 90s. He went full time with the City of Vaughan in 2001, leaving Puslinch in 2003, and worked there until retirement in 2019.
Will lives on Townline Road within the agreement area, moving there in 1985, and ended up benefiting from that agreement.
“The very first year I moved here I had a chimney fire … the flames breached into the wall and into the ceiling, Cambridge fire was here in six minutes they pulled down the ceiling, hit it with water it was out,” Will said.
Will noted the township’s fire master plan from 2015 modelled an area in the west part of the township where Cambridge fire stations can arrive sooner than Puslinch. The plan suggested revising the contract with the city to have its stations cover this area for structure fires only and Puslinch would respond to all other calls.
With the contract with Cambridge up for renewal — with an increase of over $60,000 in 2025 at a cost of $213,000 — and Puslinch getting more built out, Will decided it was time to ask council again at a meeting on Wednesday.
Mayor James Seeley said he has not seen a report saying the township is not meeting deadlines for response and stressed longer response times are part of rural living.
“The reality is rural response is rural response, we’re not full time city firefighters,” Seeley said, also noting this would lead to a tax increase in the area.
When asked about the number of calls in the area north of the 401 compared to the current service agreement area, fire chief Jamie MacNeil said he didn’t have exact data yet but was confident calls are “substantially higher” south of the 401 in that part of the township.
“I would encourage staff to review the call history in that area and let’s see what the facts are,” said Coun. Russel Hurst.
The township will be doing a new fire master plan in 2025 which interim CAO Courtenay Hoytfox said will be a data driven exercise with public consultation that can look to see if a change in service level is required or recommended in the township.
When reached by phone, MacNeil declined to comment further ahead of the updated fire master plan.
Will was not confident a new fire master plan would lead to the changes he’s seeking and is considering what his next steps are as he’s not ready to give up.
“I figured maybe some public education, some knowledge, let people know what’s going on and then maybe they might be more susceptible to signing a petition or inquiring further,” Will said.
