By CHAT News Today

Canalta, South Country Co-op to build on Strachan Road lot

Apr 25, 2017 | 12:27 PM

MEDICINE HAT, AB — Hatters can expect a lot of activity on Strachan Road in the next several months.

Canalta Hotels has announced it has an agreement in place to purchase the 17 acre lot at 2501 Strachan Road SE next to the Home Depot for commercial development in partnership with South Country Co-op.

“We’ve absolutely thrilled,” said Blair Christianson, one of the owners of Canalta, over the phone from Drumheller on Tuesday. “For us, it means a lot to us as a family to be invested in a community like Medicine Hat and continue to be involved.

“We’re just absolutely thrilled about the site and our partners and working with the City of Medicine Hat as well. They’ve been absolutely great partners through this whole process.”

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The land being developed at the moment is worth $2.9 million, with the remaining land being worth $3.24 million. The sale is expected to close in August.

The company has developed the Hampton Inn and Suites, Boston Pizza and The Keg in the Box Springs Business Park, and also owns naming rights to the Canalta Centre.

Signs have gone up on the lot, advertising the future plans to the site. Right now, a Canalta-branded extended stay hotel, a Boston Pizza and an A&W are in the plans to be built. The land will also be home to a senior’s living complex.

South Country Co-op has purchased 3.6 acres on the property, and plan to build a new convenience store, gas bar, car wash and liquor store.

“We are looking forward to continuing to develop and grow our offerings to the communities we live and work in,” said Mike Clement, South County CO-op general manager, in a news release.

Christianson says the partnership with South Country Co-op is a “natural fit.”

“It just kind of came through us knowing each other and working together and being aligned from a business and community standpoint,” he said. “We knew that we could work together on a site and have a project where we compliment each other and know that we both build great quality construction and operate great businesses.”

Christianson says construction is scheduled to start in the late summer of 2017, and the first businesses will open by 2018.