St. John's to request proposals to buy land for fire hall, depot to service Galway

The City of St. John's is getting ready to issue a request for proposals (RFP) for land for a new fire hall and depot in the expanding southwest area, according to a city source.

• St. John's preparing expected multi-million dollar deal to purchase land from Danny Williams

A source told CBC News the city may end up buying land from Danny Williams's Galway development for millions of dollars.

But first the city wants to issue an RFP to see if there is any other suitable land that it can buy for a cheaper price.

The land for a depot and fire hall must meet a number of requirements; the land must be serviced, be close to a highway and allow quick access for emergency vehicles, for example.

In late December, St. John's Mayor Dennis O'Keefe said the city is preparing to negotiate a deal with the owners of the Galway development project to purchase 20 acres, or about eight hectares, of land.

O'Keefe said an independent assessment had been initiated to determine the value of the land it wants, and a deal could be struck as early as January if negotiations go well.

He did not disclose exactly how much the purchase of the land will cost, but two-acre parcels of land in the Glencrest area of Galway are currently for sale for almost a million dollars.

Between 1998 and 2007, Williams or his blind trust paid more than $1.5 million dollars for about 2,000 acres of land in the capital area.

Big bucks to improve site, says Williams

In a statement to CBC, Williams said he has been in talks with the city regarding the land. 

"We went through negotiations over a couple of months, and we're very close to reaching a final price," he said.

Williams said that the city has the right to appropriate the land, but he expects to receive fair market value. 

"People think it was acquired cheap and sold expensive, but no. In order to get that property to market, it in fact required $100 million in improvements," said Williams.

He said he has already spent $60 million on preparing the land for further development.

He expects to spend $40 million more this year to get the first 300 acres of Galway, the Glencrest industrial area of the development, ready.