JULIE BERTRAND/Independent reporter
After some bargaining and give-and-take, Village of Donalda and County of Settler have now agreed in principle to finalize the sale of the newly built Donalda fire hall to the county in a package deal that will also include the whole lot on which the hall stands.
As the Independent went to press, the Donalda village council was waiting for the county council staff to put the final touches on the purchase agreement for the $97,809 deal.
“At one time, we were thinking of subdividing that and keeping part of the land, because it is undeveloped,” said Donalda mayor Bruce Gartside.
“The price is more attractive if the county could have the whole piece of land.”
County of Stettler will have the option to subdivide the land or use it for its own purposes.
Meanwhile, Donalda will be paying $25,000 a year to rent the hall. The rent will pay part of the hall’s operating costs.
“We were going to be paying $25,000 a year in rent whether we owned the portion of it or not,” said Gartside.
“That’s why we thought, well if it is going to cost us $25,000 a year, let’s try and get our money back.”
The fire hall was built last summer at a cost of $1.1 million.
Engineering and surveying expenditures totaled $33,809; and acquisition cost $40,000, while furniture and equipment purchase amounted to $38,924.
The remainder paid for the construction of the building.