Kortrijk (The Brussels Morning Newspaper): A new fire station at Evolis Industrial Estate will serve the Fluvia fire zone. The budget increased to €27 million, causing delays. Chairman Francis Benoit hopes for completion by 2027.
A new fire station is being built at the Evolis industrial estate, located between Kortrijk and Zwevegem. This station will be the main office for the Fluvia fire zone, bringing together all admin and support services. Fire teams from Kortrijk and Zwevegem will also move here. The goal is to improve emergency response and make it faster and more efficient, benefiting the 14 cities and towns in the area. Each place will help fund the project because it’s important for public safety. The location was chosen because it’s easy to access, making it better for the community.
Why is Kortrik’s €27M fire station facing delays and permit issues?
The original budget for a building project in Kortrijk was €22 million, but it has now increased to nearly €27 million. Because of this, the architect had to modify the design to keep it within the original budget, which caused initial delays. Now, the project is facing an even longer delay, possibly extending from six months to a year. This additional delay is due to the city of Kortrijk not approving the necessary environmental permit for the project. A “silent refusal” means that the permit hasn’t been officially rejected, but since the authorities didn’t act on it promptly, it’s effectively denied. This situation has created more issues and slowed down construction even further.
Chairman Francis Benoit mentioned that Kortrijk hasn’t responded yet regarding the environmental permit for the new fire station. Although they submitted it quickly, changes to the design were required, and Kortrijk believes these changes are too significant for the existing permit, causing a delay. They now need to apply for a new permit for the updated design, but Kortrijk is not opposed to the fire station as they are part of Fluvia. Benoit hopes that all firefighters will move into the new building by the end of 2027. Currently, the workers are still in the old barracks in Kortrijk and Zwevegem, which they want to leave. They are not homeless since the city owns those buildings, allowing the fire brigade to stay there. Services for the public will remain unchanged, but maintaining the old barracks, which are 40 and 60 years old, is becoming increasingly expensive.
