City starts selling lots in industrial park

The city's light industrial park has been given an official name and had a broker hired to start marketing and selling lots to industry.
The Light industrial park has been named the Webster Industrial Park.
"It's the Webster Industrial Park…in honour of the first business person in Chestermere," said the City of Chestermere's Economic Development Manager Jean-Marc Lacasse.
With the hiring of Colliers International, the city has taken the next big step in marketing and selling the new industrial park which will lead to a more diverse tax base in the city.
Sales and marketing have always been included in the city's strategy for the industrial park.
By hiring a Broker instead of creating their own in-house sales team the city gets the experience and connections that Colliers International has. There is also the potential for saving taxpayer money by not hiring salaried city employees to sell the industrial park lots.
"[Colliers Internationl] are paid on close of a deal," said Lacasse, "so there's no up-front cost to it."
The city made their decision after a request for proposal process.
They ended up picking Colliers International because of its international and regional reputation.
"Colliers is…very active in the Calgary region," said Lacasse.
"We believe they're the best fit for Chestermere," he said.
The selection has already started to produce results.
"They have actually provided us with a three-acre client already," said Lacasse.
Negotiations are ongoing between the city and the potential client.
While sales and negotiations are starting, it will still be a while before residents see new businesses opening. The city is looking for clients with a two to three-year time frame in mind.
"These types of projects are multi-year," said Lacasse.