Lease arrangements for the Fuller Road property and gas bar to be finalized in coming weeks
By James Wastasecoot
At the band meeting of March 22 2024, Billy Spence, Land manager, made an official announcement as required under the rules for land designations under the Reserve Land and Environment Management Program on the Fuller Road property located in East Selkirk. The property, Peguis 1H, was approved in a community vote designating the 44 acre parcel for development. He informed the meeting that the property has been designated and following a public notice being issued to band members at meetings in Peguis, Selkirk and Winnipeg, will be turned over for a nominal fee ($2.00) to the Peguis Development Corporation who will own the head lease. PDC can then sublease the property based on a fair market value. Presently, this is esimated to be $7,200 per acre.
Spence said under the program, a band is required to give notice to the community. “This is being done at public band meetings in Peguis, Selkirk and Winnipeg.” Having made the announcement at Peguis and Selkirk, it only remains to do the same at the next meeting in Winnipeg which is awaiting council scheduling.
The next step will be a letter to Indigenous Services Canada advising the completion of the public notice requirement and PDC assumption of the head lease, said Spence.
The first sublease from PDC will be the Fuller Road gas station which occupies 3 acres. The gas station was built ahead of the leasing arrangements in error, he said. This has raised liability issues if an accident happened.
The Fuller Road gas – convenience business has been closed in the last few months due to a shortage of operating funds. The newly hired PDC manager, Patrick Mackay, says that this will be remedied in the coming weeks.