Kin Enterprises is looking to buy more land to expand their non-profit organization. (Jeff D'Andrea/paNOW Staff)

By Jeff D'Andrea

Land sale delays

The seven-year wait to purchase land continues for Kin Enterprises

Oct 14, 2020 | 3:27 PM

Since 2013, Kin Enterprises president Kerry Receveur has been trying to purchase land from the City of Prince Albert, beside the 40^th Street location of the non-profit.

But since Receveur’s latest offer to purchase the land was not included on city council’s agenda in their final meeting before the election, Receveur’s wait will have to continue.

In the past seven years, Receveur said he’s made four different offers to purchase the land, and this is the second time that the offer has not gone to council. He added that his most recent offer was made back in May in order to give enough time for the potential purchase to be put on the agenda and be discussed.

“I don’t know if it’s a case of the fact that we don’t pay property taxes [as a non-profit], so they just treat us like we’re second-class citizens, or what,” Receveur said. “Our organization, we employ 120 staff members that all live in the city and pay taxes. We supply and provide support and employment programs for almost 200 people with special needs. If we didn’t exist, where would these people go?”

Receveur is trying to move Kin Enterprises’ production facility from its current residential location of 15^th Avenue East to the industrial centre.

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Oddly enough, one of the offers that actually did make it to the council meetings was a purposeful lowball offer that Receveur made as a “tongue-in-cheek” statement. Last year, Receveur offered a measly $5 for 3.2 acres of land. That made it to council, before it was rejected.

Now, Receveur is offering a lot more, $188,000 an acre. That’s more than the $111,000 the city originally listed the price as in 2013, according to Receveur. The asking price from the city is currently $250,000 an acre.

“[The city is] selling to developers of what is, in essence, a dollar an acre, and so we put an offer of $5 on land that was the equivalent to 3.2 acres. It was a tongue-in-cheek offer, we knew it wasn’t going to get accepted, but that offer went to council and was discussed,” Receveur said. “Now there’s an offer of $188,000 an acre and they decide it’s not high enough to warrant to go to city council?”

According to Mayor Greg Dionne, Receveur did not make a formal request to speak to council through the city clerk, and said the clerk has “never received correspondence” from Receveur.

“If you don’t write to the city clerk and make a formal request to go to council, it doesn’t happen,” Dionne said. “I don’t know why he didn’t make a formal request.”

Dionne said they have sold land near where Receveur is looking to purchase for $250,000 an acre and higher.

Dionne said the land is “serviced land,” meaning the city has already built and installed the streets, the sewer, and water to the site—meaning the builder would just have to hook up to the systems. The price for the land takes all that into account.

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Jeff.dandrea@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @jeff_paNOW