The City of Ottawa is pushing ahead with a public‑private partnership procurement process to build a new paramedic service deployment facility in the city’s west end.

The current Ottawa Paramedic Service headquarters, which is located on Don Reid Drive was built in 2005 for 330 staff and 80 ambulances and emergency response vehicles. A report from city staff says the building is now over capacity and unable to safely support current or future operations.

The existing site no longer provides enough climate‑controlled storage, logistics space or dedicated training areas, creating challenges and limiting the service’s ability to meet future needs. In addition, the report adds, “the site cannot be expanded further, and additional leased space is not an operationally viable long-term solution.”

A second facility in the west end would provide more space for staff, vehicles and equipment and improve response times in the west and south of Ottawa. It would also strengthen the service’s deployment model, helping paramedics reach residents more quickly and efficiently.

The city has identified a site on Strandherd Drive for the new building, and has chosen a design, build, finance, maintain procurement model that would spread project costs over 30 years and allows the city to access additional provincial funding through the Land Ambulance Services Grant Agreement.

The city has already approved $4 million for the early stages of the project, with total costs yet to be determined.

The project is expected to go out for tender in June.