MOOSE JAW — City council has agreed to sell several pieces of land for nearly $200,000 to a community business so the latter can expand its operations.
During its executive meeting in late May, council authorized city administration to create a street and lane closure bylaw for properties near 1625 Caribou Street West and 1642 Athabasca Street West. Once that is completed, city hall can subdivide the lands — 0.524 hectares (1.31 acres) in size — and sell them to the Moose Jaw Co-operative Association Limited for $135,000 per acre plus GST.
Excluding the GST, the Co-op will pay $176,850 to acquire these parcels and lots.
The business will be responsible for all associated fees with this sale, while the mayor and city clerk will sign the purchase and sale agreement on behalf of the City of Moose Jaw.
During its recent June meeting, council gave three unanimous readings to the street and lane closure bylaw, which means administration can proceed with the sale.
A council report noted that city hall informed property owners adjacent to the affected streets about the closure of the streets, but did not receive any comments about the action.
In an email, city hall said the parcels that the municipality is selling include portions of a street and laneways that are designated for public use. However, for the city to transfer ownership to a “private party,” it must first formally close these areas through a street and lane closure bylaw.
“This is a legislative requirement to remove their public right-of-way status,” the email stated.
The affected streets and laneways are vacant, not used for transportation purposes and are unlikely to serve any future needs of the city, so closing them allows the municipality to consolidate those parcels with adjacent Co-op lands to support a proposed business expansion, the email continued. Subdividing the land is necessary for development and legal land title purposes.
“The expansion will consolidate the newly acquired parcels with (Co-op’s) existing property at 1625 Caribou Street West and 1642 Athabasca Street West to accommodate future growth,” the email added.
The next regular council meeting is Monday, July 14.
