Kalgan Volunteer Bushfire Brigade community campaign for new fire shed almost done thanks to City of Albany

A fire brigade shed “almost a decade in the making” has received critical funding from the City of Albany, bringing the long-awaited project closer to fruition.

Kalgan Volunteer Bushfire Brigade was allocated $153,633 in the City’s 2024-25 budget to help cover earthworks and other project costs for a new fire facility with the council also selecting a contractor for the design and build.

Brigade president Grant Solomon said he is thrilled they are “just about to the finish line”, as its current structures have not been viable for a long time.

“Basically our two sheds have no water, no ablution facilities, there’s no toilets — which is fine for the blokes who can just go around the back but we do have ladies in the brigade and there’s nowhere for them to go,” he said.

“We don’t have anywhere to wash our PPE, all our equipment and our respirators like you’re supposed to do.

“We didn’t have a meeting room so we mocked up one out of plasterboard and timber frame which has done quite nicely but now that’s too small for our meetings because we have too many members.

“They really aren’t fit for purpose based on current standards.”

The brigade has about 45 members and covers a large area of the Great Southern, stretching west to Oyster Harbour to the north of Millbrook and east to Two Peoples Bay.

Mr Solomon started campaigning for a new shed in 2015, but increasing costs, lack of suitable sites and development hiccups resulted in an almost decade-long crusade for the project.

The site issue was solved by a generous donation from local farmers John and Kerrie Smeeton, who have offered 5000sqm of their farm for free.

Mr Solomon said after the City of Albany’s contribution, the only thing left is for the Department of Fire and Emergency Services to confirm their grant funding, which he hopes is “imminent”.

“We’re pretty hopeful because they’ve done similar things before and we’ve gone so far with so much community support,” he said.

“As long as we can get funding from DFES, (the city) will cover the shortfall.

“We’re just about to the finish line now, it’s brilliant.”

Speaking in the council on May 28, Cr Thomas Brough, who is a member of the KVFB praised the “bottom-up project from dedicated volunteers”.