New fire halls have been springing up all over Wheatland County this summer, with another on its way.
    Standard is joining fellow communities such as Rockyford and Rosebud, which opened new halls this summer, in building a brand new fire hall. As of this week, construction on the new hall has begun.
    A new fire hall has been in the works for a few years now, but everything came together a mere month ago.
    “The firefighters have been fundraising for years,” said Standard Mayor Alan Larsen. “In a partnership with the Village of Standard, Rural Firefighters Association, the County of Wheatland, and getting grant money it all came to a head about a month ago.”
    In that month the project went from being uncertain to ground being broken and construction begun. Fortunately, the many years of planning had resulted in a design being settled upon for awhile, all that remained was finding a contractor.
    “We went from not knowing anything to getting a general contractor and building already,” said Larsen. “A lot of the leg work had been done beforehand. For example, they already had the design they wanted. It was just a matter of putting it out for tender for a month.”
    For awhile now, the Standard Fire Department has outgrown its current hall and the location is problematic for the department. The current building is three bays, not enough for all the department's  units. The hall sits in the middle of a playground zone, which can slow things down in a situation that can teeter between life and death.
    The new hall is six bays, room for five units and a wash bay. The new hall is also being built in the Standard industrial area, closer to Highway 840, an ideal location should an emergency arise.
    “Right now we’re parking one of the units at the County shop, because there isn’t enough room for it at the current hall. It was also in a playground zone,” said Larsen. “The old fire hall had its time."

The Standard Fire Department has grown a little too big for its current building. Funding for the new hall was finally approved a month ago, after years of planning and fundraising by Standard firefighters. The new hall will boast six bays  and is located in the industrial sector of the village, rather than the playground zone the current hall is in.

    ATCO Electric is in the early stage of a big move to amalgamate its operation in Drumheller.
    East Central District manager Allan Gano for ATCO Electric confirmed with The Mail they are planning to renovate and expand what is known as its warehouse, near Greenview Villa, to house its entire Drumheller operations under one roof.
    “We are committed to the community and want to maintain a strong presence,” said Gano. “Our plan today is we want to expand our existing facility at our warehouse location. We are going to bring all of our staff into one location, that is our goal.”
    While the company is in the preliminary stages of the transition, Gano said they have leased some property in the area to continue operations while the space is being renovated.
    "We are still working on our overall design as well as approvals, both internally and externally, so we are working through that,” said Gano. “In anticipation, we have started relocating staff from our warehouse building. We have a few spots leased in town.”
    He adds that not all the staff has been moved yet as many of the buildings they have leased will need renovations.
    “Our goal is to complete the project by the end of 2014. That is quite optimistic, but that is our goal,” said Gano.
    ATCO has had a presence in the valley for 85 years and in recent years ATCO has brought on new staff in the area. The company is not expected to add more staff with the improvement of the facility.
    “We aren’t looking at a huge expansion. We are just really fortunate we have a good bunch of staff there and a renewed commitment to the community that we're going to expand and bring everyone together. It will draw out some efficiencies from having everyone in one location,” said Gano.

ATCO Electric is planning to house its operation in Drumheller under one roof, and is beginning a renovation/expansion of its warehouse location.