Winnipeg Free Press
Wednesday October 20 2004
By David O'Brien
THE formal transfer of ownership of Kapyong Barracks is not expected to take place until early next year, according to a spokesman for the company that is buying the land.
Ravi Josi of the Canada Lands Company (CLC) said the Department of National Defence is preparing a submission on the proposed sale for Treasury Board, which must approve the deal.
Josi said Canada Lands has appraised the property to determine its value, but he declined to disclose any numbers.
He said the Defence Department would conduct its own appraisal before talks begin on a final sale price for the 65-hectare site on Kenaston Boulevard.
The CLC is an arm's length Crown corporation that develops valuable federal properties that have been declare surplus
The agency intends to develop the former base into a mixed-use neighbourhood with homes, parks, apartment blocks and businesses. Josi said an environmental review of the site has determined it is somewhat "brownish," with hydro carbon contamination from years of vehicle maintenance and asbestos in some of the buildings.
"We didn't find anything unexpected," he said, noting underground fuel tanks had been removed sometime in the past.
Josi said the profits from the sale will be forwarded to the federal government's central revenue fund. The Defence Department can then apply to have the money transferred to its account, he said.
Josi said the CLC development plan will respect the site's military past by naming parks, buildings and streets after famous battles and heroes.