01-24-2024 Council Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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MINUTES CITY COUNCIL JANUARY 24, 2024 5 planning sessions. He stated that staff has had many conversations with the current property owner, who is amenable to selling the property to the City. He stated that an appraisal process was completed this summer and the City moved forward with that value as the offer to begin negotiations. He noted that there has been an offer from another buyer who is currently offering $200,000 more than the agreed upon price with the City and therefore the City is thankful that the property owner is willing to continue with the purchase price of $1,000,000. He provided details on the leaseback option which states that the City of Little Canada will agree to lease back to Seller the buildings and surrounding property for a period of two (2) years. The City of Little Canada will also agree to lease back to Seller the 5,200 square foot storage building for a period of eight (8) years. He reviewed the revised purchase agreement which includes the same purchase price, updated language for IRS tax status, and updated language on the leaseback. Gerald Proulx, 7 Hawthorne Court, North Oaks, appreciated the opportunity to offer this property to the City for its vision of expanding its recreational offerings in the community. He recognized that this is a key property for Pioneer Park. He thanked the Council for considering this opportunity to expand the park. He noted that after the second year, the document reads that he would control the entire 6,000 square foot building. He stated that is not correct and noted that he would only require 2,500 square feet and the rest of the building would be available for City use. He thanked the City Administrator for his work in working out all these details. Mayor Fischer recognized that there has been a lot of negotiation in the last year or so to ensure the language worked for both sides. He recognized that during the first two years, current operations will continue as-is, but after that time it would seem that the current property owner would maintain 2,500 square feet within the building, and access to that. He noted that it would be likely that the City would be working on the remainder of the property at that time. The City Administrator confirmed that is the intent. Mr. Proulx commented that is his understanding as well. T. Miller asked if there would be a possibility that the property owner could be moved at that time to another space with the same amount of available space if that was suitable to him. Mr. Proulx commented that he would be okay with that, provided he agreed with the space. He believed that would not come into play during those first two years given the time it would take for the City to complete its planning. D. Miller appreciated this noting that this property has been discussed for some time when he was a member of the Parks and Recreation Commission. He asked if the existing leases would be kept during the first two years, or whether those parties could change during that time. Mr. Proulx commented that he would continue the operations as-is and would not intend to write new leases. The City Administrator asked if some of those overnight truck parking leases are held by Little Canada residents. Mr. Proulx confirmed that there are several residents that hold those leases. The City Administrator commented that may lead to an issue, recognizing that it is not the responsibility of the City to find space for overnight truck parking, but is something that the Council may want to consider. Mayor Fischer introduced the following resolution and moved its adoption: