The city of Lacombe, Alta., will not get a hoped-for Canadian Tire store—at least not yet. The Red Deer Advocate reports that Canadian Tire Real Estate Ltd. has returned a $750,000 “deposit” given to it by the city “to spur commercial development.” The city spent $3.325 million to buy land in 2018, hoping to attract commercial development.
Council voted to give $750,000 to Canadian Tire, as a “non-refundable deposit” to encourage it to build a store in the city, but after the onset of the pandemic the retailer was unable to meet the agreed deadlines. According to Canadian Tire, Lacombe is “one of the biggest markets in Canada” without one of its stores and remains a priority for expansion. The company’s real estate arm remains the owner of the site.
