RM of Sherwood officially opens its new office
The RM of Sherwood office has a new home, on the outskirts of Harbour Landing,
The Rural Municipality of Sherwood No. 159 celebrated the grand opening of their new office at 4400 Campbell Street, in West Harbour Landing, on Tuesday.
Tim Probe, deputy reeve of the RM of Sherwood, spoke to a crowd of event attendees in the building ’s council chambers, featuring custom-made furniture.
“This is way more conducive to doing business when we have people from out of town and other provinces come in. It’s amazing. They now see us as a place to do business, where before we were a bit of a hillbilly backroads kind of place, in today’s standards,” said Probe.
Despite some great memories at the old location, Probe said the new building is ideal for everyone.
Amenities include ample parking, 5450 square feet of office space, and — for the first time in Sherwood RM office history — wheelchair accessibility.
“We held an election (at the old location) one year, and we had to physically carry a wheelchair person in and out of the building, and up and down flights of stairs. There were no ramps or anything,” said Probe.
The cost of the building, located on four acres of land, totalled about $2.2 million. The price included furnishings. Original value was estimated at approximately $5.5 million.
Construction was partially funded by the $400,000 sale of the old building, and a 25-year mortgage. Ratepayer money supplemented the cost-remainder.
“The land alone is worth about $750,000 to $1 million an acre, and we got it for free. So really, at the end of the day, this is a five-to-six-million-dollar building. And, now it’s set for the future RM of Sherwood ratepayers ... if they should ever decide to sell and build again then they have quite a nest egg to work with from this place,” said Probe.
According to the RM of Sherwood, a tax arrears enforcement process forfeited the land to the RM. The process occurred before surrounding land parcels were annexed to the City of Regina in 2013.
Mayor Michael Fougere attended the event. He said although the City of Regina and the RM of Sherwood have had their differences, the new location signifies a strong new partnership.
“There’s lots of opportunity around our city, and we’ve worked to make sure we support their growth and they support ours, as well ... It’s symbolism of a new beginning, and a new era,” said Fougere.