The former Midway School site could soon be the location of a manufacturing shop for the oilsands industry.
The site, located 12 kilometres east of the QEII between Didsbury and Carstairs, has been vacant since 2010 when the school was closed.
The board put the site up for tender late last year. The five-acre property and 9,000-square-foot building were then purchased by a trio of welders for just over $15,000.
"Two of us are ex-Stampede Steel employees out of Linden and we have been in that area for 20 years and we have rented and leased many shops. I have been looking at that spot since it closed down,î said project leader Darcy MacKinnon, a 48-year-old welder who currently lives in Calgary but does most of his contract work for the oilsands industry in the Fort McMurray area. His two partners are Steve Nowosad, 35, of Crossfield, and Jeff McNall, 45, of Penhold.
"I thought, ëMan that would be a perfect spot',î he said, adding the site is centrally located between the QEII and Highway 21. "When I saw it was out for tender I jumped all over it and we got it.î
He said the new company, which is tentatively being called Old School Holdings, will build pipeline and oilfield related products.
"Everything is happening up there (Fort McMurray) right now and they are screaming for product,î said MacKinnon, who has been a welder for the past 20 years. "We are going to build the products down in the shop and ship it up to Fort McMurray, whether it be power lines or pipelines.î
He said the next step for the new venture is to meet with Mountain View County planning officials on March 28 to have the site rezoned for commercial manufacturing.
"As soon as we have the zoning is when we are hoping to start,î said MacKinnon.
He said his new company will be good for the Midway community, as it's anticipated as many as 12 new employees from the area will ultimately be hired.
"I know from being in that area for a lot of years there are a lot of welders and by-hand welders,î said MacKinnon. "There are already people in Midway and Linden that work for me in a contract situation.î
Before the doors are open for business, he said upgrades need to be done on the facility, which includes a 3,200-square-foot former gymnasium, four large classrooms, a kitchen, washrooms, and smaller rooms once used for a library, science room and an office.
MacKinnon noted the school has been vacant since closing. He said there are still chalkboards on the walls that have to be removed, as well as cleanup and repairs from vandalism, which include broken windows and spray-painting to the interior.
"The basic structure is in great shape. It just needs to be turned over into a welding shop,î said MacKinnon, adding there will be "minimalî changes to the layout of the building's interior.
MacKinnon said the entire shop will be up to all industry-regulated safety standards. He said there are also plans to make the outside of the building, as well as the grounds, more attractive.
The Midway School was built in 1953 and expanded in 1960. It was closed a half century later following a Chinook's Edge School Division viability study that determined the institution's low enrolment numbers had affected its ability to offer effective programming.
