Look for a new Rona store in Elliot Lake next year.
Elliot Lake City Council has approved the purchase of a 5-acre, city-owned piece of land by Chad Sonnenberg, the principal owner of the present Rona store on Timber Road, where he plans to build a 15,000 sq ft store and a 5,000 sq ft warehouse. The land is south of the Napa store on Highway 108.
In a written report, Elliot Lake CAO Daniel Gagnon told members of City Council at their Tuesday meeting,
"A new Rona store will be significantly larger (3x) with more diverse product offering. The community needs additional retail on several fronts," said Elliot Lake CAO Daniel Gagnon in a written report to members of City Council at their Tuesday meeting. "The new store will create some new jobs and significant new taxation revenue and drive new traffic into the community from the region."
The site is not shovel ready and the city will work with Sonnenberg as he completes extensive pre-development work before construction begins. Sonnenberg is also responsible for paying to get the land serviced.
"Legal advice was sought and the price is $125,750 (5.03 acres x $25,000 per acre) is considered paid in full when Rona conducts the site work and servicing needed to make the lot buildable (cost estimates for that work are well in excess of $400,000)," Gagnon said. "The agreement closes when two buildings are constructed representing 20,000 sq ft. There is a covenant that the buildings will be constructed by Oct. 31, 2020 or the city can re-purchase the lot for $2."
Work is expected to get underway on the site for the new Elliot Lake Rona store shortly.