Brandon Sun - PRINT EDITION
COLIN CORNEAU/BRANDON SUN Enlarge Image
The site of Fleming School is seen looking to the southwest. The building in the foreground is the school's gymnasium.
A number of different groups are furiously sharpening their pencils in preparation to bid on the former Fleming School property.
The City of Brandon and the Brandon School Division are both currently accepting purchase proposals for the separate pieces of land they own between 23rd and 25th streets just north of Victoria Avenue.
To place a bid on the city's L-shaped portion of the former school site requires a $10,000 refundable deposit, while a $5,000 refundable deposit is needed to place a bid on the school building and immediate footprint, which the division owns.
But the clock is ticking for those interested in snapping up some or all of the property, as the submission deadline for the city's land is Aug. 20 and Oct. 15 for the school division's land.
Brandon University is interested in purchasing the whole site to allow for future expansion of its campus, with immediate plans for the construction of single-family homes suitable for mature students with families, along with greenspace.
"There isn't that size of property that comes available adjacent to a university that often," says the university's vice-president of administration and finance, Scott Lamont.
"There are some things that we need to accomplish fairly shortly, and then there are some things that we will probably develop over time on that property as the needs of the university change."
Lamont notes that the university would be quite receptive to working with Sioux Valley Dakota Nation -- which is eyeing up the former school building and its immediate footprint -- as part of its vision for the school division's portion of the property.
"We don't immediately need the Fleming School and so if Sioux Valley is able to make use of it, I think it's sort of a win for us all," he said.
Sioux Valley Chief Vince Tacan confirmed to the Sun yesterday that the First Nation is working with Indian and Northern Affairs Canada to submit a bid for the school division's property, but has no immediate intentions to bid on the city's portion of the land.
Meanwhile, the Western Manitoba Seniors non-profit Housing Co-operative is setting its sights on at least a portion of the city's land to help turn its dream of a three-phase construction of 150 affordable seniors housing units into reality, says the group's vice-president, Harvey Douglas.
"The executive has basically said let's get busy do something on this, whether there's no hope or not."
How elaborate the co-op's proposal for the city's land is will depend entirely on to what extent the senior levels of government are willing to help fund their proposal, Douglas noted. The group expects to hear about the potential of provincial funding by mid-August.
Depending on what the city ultimately decides to do with its portion of land, the co-op might submit a proposal to purchase the school division's portion later this year, he added.
And at least one member of Brandon's private development sector is sniffing around the property.
Jacobson-Greiner Homes president Jared Jacobson confirms they will submit a purchase proposal for the city's 4.5 acres of land later this summer.
Jacobson says they also plan to re-submit a bid on school division's portion of land, as long as there is no move to designate the former school facility as a municipal heritage building.
"We wouldn't really have a use for the building if we had to keep the building," he said.
The former school building is currently on a list of city sites that have the potential to be designated as a heritage site.
However, such a designation is not being actively sought at this time.
Sidebar:
A grassroots group committed to sustaining the future of the former Fleming School property has given interested bidders and the city's elected officials some food for thought.
The collation of feedback and ideas from a community-organized meeting at the former school site earlier this month suggests the neighbourhood's priorities for the sale of both the city and school division's portions of the property are either to keep it as a greenspace or turn it into a hybrid neighbourhood of senior housing and community education space.
But at this time, there's not any one specific proposal that will be fleshed out and submitted by the group, says its spokesman, Curt Shoultz.
"We are simply expressing our ideas -- we have no power, no money and not really the development expertise," he said. "There's so much that has to happen between 'these are the ideas' and 'this is what we'd like to do.'"
There are members of the community, however, who are mulling over the idea of submitting a proposal next month, asking the city to simply leave its portion of land alone and let it flourish as a greenspace.
"We would pay $10,000 (for the bid deposit) to propose that the city would just hold on to it and cover the mowing," he said. "We're asking for the least impact, the least change."
Another idea percolating through certain segments of the neighbourhood would be to move the aging West End Community Centre to the former Fleming School building from its aging building just down the street, though Shoultz said that's still very much in the discussion stage.
"All of this is a delicate matter of gathering support without alienating anyone. We really just want this (feedback) to be part of the consideration."
» Brandon Sun
Republished from the Brandon Sun print edition July 31, 2010 A1
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A number of different groups are furiously sharpening their pencils in preparation to bid on the former Fleming School property.
The City of Brandon and the Brandon School Division are both currently accepting purchase proposals for the separate pieces of land they own between 23rd and 25th streets just north of Victoria Avenue.
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A number of different groups are furiously sharpening their pencils in preparation to bid on the former Fleming School property.
The City of Brandon and the Brandon School Division are both currently accepting purchase proposals for the separate pieces of land they own between 23rd and 25th streets just north of Victoria Avenue.
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1 Comments
Posted by:Deborah Boschman
July 31, 2010 at 9:36 AM
I DON'T BELIEVE that there should be TWO proposals.
Why CAN'T the Brandon School Division and the City WORK TOGETHER FOR A CHANGE FOR THE VERY BEST INTERESTS of this community?
Why can't there just be ONE PROPOSAL?
There is a private developer who plans to bid on this property.
How much land does this private developer already own within this City?
Should there be a LIMIT to how much land ONE DEVELOPER can own within this City?
How many FRIENDS does this developer have within City Hall and within the Brandon School Division?
Does this developer has an UNFAIR ADVANTAGE over the other proposals?
Is this going to be a FACTOR in whom these proposals are going to be awarded to?
I am just SICK AND TIRED of what I have repeatedly seen GO ON within this City.
I am DESPERATE to see CHANGE and things handled MORE EQUITABLY and FAIRLY within this City, for a change.
Do you have to be a Free Mason to get SPECIAL PRIVILEDGES, consideration and respect within this City?
Please DON'T FORGET the Promenade Poject.
It was SQUASHED.
Were any or some of these SAME PLAYERS that now wish to bid on this Fleming property HEAVILY involved in the decision to squash the plans for the Promenade Project, which offered us DESPERATELY, MUCH NEEDED AFFORDABLE HOUSING?
Are we going to ALLOW A MONOPOLY or do we REALLY WANT DIVERSITY and fairness on the playing field within Brandon?
MAJORITY ELECTORATE, PAY VERY CLOSE ATTENTION to this decision!!!