The city of Coquitlam bought 160 acres of land in the northeast section of Burke Mountain, an investment staff said will benefit future taxpayers.
The deal with the provincial government, which put the Crown land up for sale last year in an effort to balance its budget, closed in December.
But the information came up publicly for the first time during budget consultations Monday.
Perry Staniscia, Coquitlam's general manager of strategic initiatives, said the land, which sits outside of the development reserve, cost approximately $11 million to $12 million and is located in the eastern portion of Burke Mountain.
"These lands were not bid on by the private sector," he said. "We came in after the fact. Since there were no other buyers, we decided to purchase it."
He told council he believes the purchase was a good investment for the city and will benefit future taxpayers as the rest of the area develops. Money for the purchase came from the city's land sale reserve fund, which still holds approximately $25 million to $30 million.
Last January, the provincial government announced that it would be selling 584 acres on Burke Mountain, which was broken up into 21 parcels in the Smiling and Partington Creek neighbourhoods. Wesbild Holdings was the largest purchaser, buying up 360 acres.
Over the next 30 years, Coquitlam is expected to add 90,000 more residents - pushing the population level to 225,000 by 2046 from the current 132,000 - with 45% of the new residents living along the Evergreen Line and 25% on Burke Mountain.
@GMcKennaTC
