A day after receiving approval from Alberta's Court of Queen's Bench for the multi-million dollar purchase, Lac La Biche County officials have released the following statement:
County purchasing property for Protective Services Building
The property formerly known as La Biche Ford will be retrofitted for emergency services
Lac La Biche… Lac La Biche County is purchasing property at 9110 Beaver Hill Road (the land and structure formerly known as La Biche Ford) in order to relocate Lac La Biche District Fire Services to a more spacious and central Protective Services Building.
The County is acquiring the property for $4.1 million, and has budgeted an additional $800,000 for renovations. That brings the total cost of the new Protective Services Building (and land) to $4.9 million for a 24,564 square foot building. By comparison, constructing a whole new facility alone would cost the County approximately $5.5 to $6 million for 18,000 square feet.
“Council only considered this deal after carefully weighing the potential economic impacts. We didn’t want to crowd out any potential investors, so we waited a year to allow prospective buyers to consider the property,” said Mayor Omer Moghrabi. “After speaking to automotive dealers across the province, who told us that today’s investors prefer smaller car lots located along highways, Council was confident that this location would be ideal for the new Protective Services Building. We’re continuing to look at opportunities for land and infrastructure that will support future business development.”
The facility will serve as the new Hamlet of Lac La Biche fire hall, giving firefighters enough space to house all vehicles and equipment in the same building. It can also host other emergency organizations, allowing them to better coordinate their efforts.
“This is a prime location to accommodate fire and other emergency personnel, training, and equipment. In the event of an emergency, the new building will also serve as our key incident command post,” said John H. Kokotilo, Regional Fire Chief and Manager of Protective Services. “With this property, we will be able to support our region’s long-term needs and growth for many years to come.”
The deal was approved by the Court of Queen’s Bench on September 11, 2019. Once all standard conditions have been satisfied, the County will take possession of the property. Work will begin on retrofitting the new Protective Services Building in the near future.
