Photo courtesy of Scott Roblin

By Scott Roblin

Family Leisure Centre

City looking at greener upgrade to FLC heating plant

Jun 29, 2020 | 5:22 PM

MEDICINE HAT, AB – The City of Medicine Hat is looking into upgrades to the Family Leisure Centre which could make powering the facility more environmentally friendly.

Following a meeting of the City’s corporate services committee last week, a plan was put in place to design and install a new cogeneration plant at the FLC in the coming year, pending City Council approval.

The proposed plan would see the City bring on the plant which would take wasted heat from the facility and turn it into sustainable heating for the building.

“It’s a combined heat and power unit,” said general manager of corporate asset management with the City Joe Cartwright. “The waste heat from that combined heat and power unit is captured and used to heat the water or to otherwise heat the building. So, it’s really a win-win where we get to use that power responsibility and lower our CO2 emissions.”

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The total cost of the project would be in the neighbourhood of $883,000, however the City isn’t expecting to foot most of that bill if approved.

Through the Municipal Climate Change Action Centre, the City will be looking for $612,000 in grant funding to cover about 70 percent of the total cost with the rest coming from the City’s community capital reserve.

Along with providing a greener alternative in heating the FLC, Cartwright said the cogeneration plant would serve as a sizable cost-saver to the City long-term.

“We’re looking to hopefully get savings of up to $47,000 a year, which definitely adds up,” said Cartwright. “In this time of fiscal responsibility and restraint, we’re really looking to get as much operations savings as we can. So, cutting back on energy is one way we can do that.”

If approved by City Council next week, the next step would be applying for the provincial grant money and beginning the process for selecting a designer.

Construction on the plant is still a ways off, though it wouldn’t result in an entire shutdown of the FLC if that point is reached.

“It would have to tie into existing building systems, so there may be brief interruptions,” said Cartwright. “But, nothing that would bring down the FLC or the pool in any way, shape, or form.”

The cogeneration plant would be the latest in recent upgrades to the Family Leisure Centre, as construction work on the facility’s parking lot remains ongoing while the building remains closed.

This work would be less visible to the public, something that the City said is intentional.

“We’re hoping that nobody sees or notices anything about it,” said Cartwright. “It’s one of those building systems that’s really best if it’s kept out of sight, out of mind. Just know that it’s going to be back there pumping out power for years to come.”

Hinging on acquiring the MCCAC funding and selecting a designer, construction on the cogeneration plant could take place in the spring or summer of 2021.