NEWS RELEASE
CITY OF BARRIE
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This morning, Mayor Jeff Lehman signed an agreement for Barrie Fire & Emergency Service (BFES) to provide dispatch service to the City of Markham.
BFES will begin providing 24/7 emergency call-taking and dispatching for Markham by the end of the year. With the addition of Markham, the BFES Communications Branch will serve 21 municipalities, including Barrie. Markham will be the city’s largest customer.
“Barrie Fire & Emergency Service is one of the most respected fire services in Ontario,” said Mayor Jeff Lehman. “The fact that the City of Markham chose BFES to deliver such a critical service to their residents is a testament to the outstanding skills and expertise of the BFES team. I'm proud that Markham and Barrie are again demonstrating the potential of municipal collaboration in serving our residents.”
"Innovation and forward thinking is at the core of everything we do at the City of Markham, and by leveraging strategic partnerships we are able to keep costs down and improve the customer experience for the residents of Markham and Barrie,” said Markham Mayor Frank Scarpitti.
The addition of Markham as a client municipality will help offset capital and operating costs associated with maintaining the City’s communications and dispatch centre, ultimately benefiting the City of Barrie’s taxpayers. This shared service agreement demonstrates how municipalities can partner to provide services in a way that is most economical for their residents.
In 2020, BFES dispatched more than 21,250 emergency incidents in Barrie and client municipalities.
To learn more about Barrie Fire & Emergency Service, click here.
To learn more about Markham Fire & Emergency Services, click here.
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