Jan. 7 update: Following the initial publication of this story, the Town of Crossfield reached out to the Rocky View Weekly to stress the presentation was "unsolicited" and was only received by council as an information item.
A two-storey office and retail space, which the developer hopes will house the Town office, has been proposed for the heart of downtown Crossfield.
Resident John Verhagen presented his proposal for a 22,600 square-foot facility at the Dec. 15, 2020, Town council meeting. According to Verhagen, the development would measure 190-feet long, 60-feet wide and 32-feet tall. It would be situated on the east side of the 1200 block of Railway Street, across from ATB Financial.
“Our goal is to enhance our community with a large, attractive structure that would have a positive impact architecturally, socially and economically,” he said.
Verhagen spoke on behalf of a real estate holding company that owns land along Railway Street. He told council his team is looking for the Town to be the new building’s anchor tenant. By dividing the facility into legally separate titles, he said ownership could be transferred and the municipality could buy and occupy a section of the building.
He added his team would take care of the building design, architecture, engineering, construction, permits, administration, procurement and turnkey delivery.
“Our building philosophy is building an attractive community focal point with western heritage themes, a durable exterior finish, low maintenance, energy-efficient [sic] and important sound and noise control, seeing as we’re close to the railroad,” Verhagen said.
The development would provide an alternative location for Town headquarters, according to Verhagen. The municipality is currently based in the Crossfield United Church at 1005 Ross Street, where council meetings are also held.
In 2019, the Town announced plans to move into the old CIBC building on Railway Street and signed an agreement with the banking company to buy the 97-year-old building and renovate it. The space would serve as the municipality’s office, as well as new council chambers.
Verhagen said the proposed facility would provide many advantages over the old CIBC building, including greater design flexibility, lower final costs, potential for future growth, additional on-site parking and a larger land base.
If the Town moved into the proposed building, he added, it would be the anchor tenant and the remaining space would be rented out.
“I think it’s a better location and a nicer building – therefore, more desirable," Verhagen told council. "This being the centre of the town, is about as central as you can get.”
When questioned by Coun. Kim Harris, Verhagen said if council is not in favour of relocating the Town office to the proposed building, the project would only be pursued if another anchor tenant was secured.
“The risk is too great to build on spec only,” he said.
In response to another question from Harris, Verhagen said the total cost of the project would be fully detailed once the concept for the buildout is complete.
“It’s hard to put a final number to it today,” he said. “I think that has to be a discussion with some of your team and you have to tell me what you want and need because that will determine the cost.”
Council ultimately approved accepting Verhagen’s delegation as information.
“[Verhagen’s presentation] was unsolicited and looks like a great proposal, but we already have a business we’ve dedicated as the town office," Mayor Jo Tennant said after the meeting. "Now, we haven’t put a budget allocation to it, so at this point, we’ll take a look at the unsolicited information [Verhagen’ has] provided. No decisions have been made for sure.”
Tennant added Crossfield still has to allocate a budget for the CIBC building renovations and, because of that, Verhagen’s proposal has not been ruled out.
“Because we haven’t done our budgeting on the new location, renovating an old building may be more costly,” she said. “Having said that, being an owner in a condo situation for a business, there are certainly costs going forward."
Scott Strasser, AirdrieToday.com
Follow me on Twitter @scottstrasser19
