INNISFAIL - Sensing an opportunity to kick-start the town's sluggish housing market, town council is enthusiastically supporting a developer's request to build show homes prior to the installation of asphalt roadways.
"I am totally in favour of this. I can see the sense of urgency to get a show home up and ready for next year's selling season. I think that would be crucial for you guys to be up and ready," said Coun. Doug Bos at council's Agenda and Priorities Meeting on Dec. 17. "I'm hoping the economy will pick up, things will go and will accelerate the whole project by a year by letting you go ahead to build a show home as soon as possible."
Bos, along with other members of council, endorsed an application by Gobi Singh, owner of Airdrie-based Creation Communities and developer of the 127-acre Bella Vista subdivision, through a "straw vote" initiated by Mayor Jim Romane. Singh is seeking to have his development agreement modified to build show homes before asphalt installation. However, before Singh can proceed with applications for development and building permits council must ratify its approval of the development agreement modification at the Jan. 14 regular meeting.
"I think you've got pretty much a majority here. Other than the paperwork and a few things we have to get done properly we should be able to get it into your hands in January," said Romane.
Singh made a 30-minute presentation to council at the Dec. 17 meeting. He told council construction on the Bella Vista subdivision, located on the west side of town along Highway 54 across the entrance of 42nd Street, began in late August with deep underground utilities (water and sewer) installed. However, council was told the developer was not able to have the asphalt roads installed before winter as the asphalt plant was closed in November.
He then requested to council his company be allowed to build four show homes -- two villa-style structures and two single family dwelling models -- as soon as possible for the developer to be ready in time for next fall's optimum selling season.
Council was told by Singh there would be no residents occupying the show homes until proper asphalt is installed in 2019, adding there would be little or no risk to the town.
"I don't see a whole lot of downside to us," noted Coun. Gavin Bates.
Council was told Singh, who is a major housing market player in Leduc, Crossfield, Blackfalds, Springbank and Cold Lake, is aggressively moving forward with the Bella Vista subdivision as he believes there is significant potential in Innisfail -- optimism council members seized immediately.
"It hasn't been easy to get to that level of confidence but we definitely feel corporately that Innisfail is reasonably well located, close to a major population centre, being the south end of Red Deer and some of the surrounding areas," said Singh following his presentation. " If we can price point ourselves to make it attractive for a buyer where they are paying 40, 50 and 60 thousand dollars lower than they would in Red Deer, especially where the market is today from the mortgage qualifying standpoint, I think we can create the momentum, we can create those sales, which we would like to see and of course the town would."
Singh said the first phase of the subdivision development will see a four-acre commercial, and up to 20 acres of residential development, which will include 44 new 1,200- to 1,300-square-foot homes -- 14 villa style and 30 single family home dwellings with a price tag in the $320- to $330,000 range.
"But we are kind of a realist as well in the sense, like I was saying earlier to council, we want to anticipate 80, 90, 100 sales a year, not for starters," said Singh. "If we can do 25 to 30 sales a year we are happy with it," he said.
As for the commercial development component of Phase 1, Singh told council preliminary interest has already been shown and discussions have begun with additional ones anticipated in early 2019. He said Phase 1 of the subdivision development project is an 18-month to two-year program.
