/MH acquires lot now owns block 
The Township of Minden Hills has purchased this lot abutting the municipal parking lot. /CHAD INGRAM Staff

MH acquires lot now owns block 

The Township of Minden Hills has reached an agreement to purchase a parcel of land abutting the municipal property where the township office is located.

The contract approved by councillors during a March 29 meeting shows the township will pay $60000 for the 70-by-80-foot property along with covering up to $2500 in legal fees for the seller.

“At least two terms of council have worked diligently to try to acquire this and this is a wonderful resolution” said Mayor Brent Devolin during last week’s meeting.

In February council had voted to enact the expropriation process in order to acquire the property.

“We don’t take this action lightly. There has been many overtures to the property owners of at least two sessions of council the previous council” Devolin said at the time. “We didn’t come to this quickly.”

The acquisition of that property which fronts onto Prince Street and backs onto the municipal parking lot means the township now owns the block extending from St. Germain to Milne streets and bordered by Prince Street and the parking lot. A rental home that once existed on the property burned down years ago. It had been located next to another rental house that had been owned by the municipality and next to that was located the Pritchard House also owned by the township. The municipally owned buildings were demolished in late 2015.

Currently the only structure on the block is the aging Minden Hills fire hall. After the new fire hall currently under construction along Highway 35 becomes operational it is likely the township will demolish the old hall freeing up the block for some kind of new use.

Just what will happen on the land is unclear at this point but Devolin has said in the past it’s council’s intention to further develop that part of the block.