The mayor came out, four city councillors were there, the executive director and president of the Chamber of Commerce both showed, as did dozens of business people. The occasion – the opening of the Revelstole Business Complex in the industrial park last Friday.
"Today touched my heart that Dave [Mayor Raven] spoke eloquently and we have a lot of people behind us who know us, care about us and understand," said owner Ross Laing in an interview after the opening.
The Revelstoke Business Complex features 10 separate units at either 1,200 or 2,220 square feet each. They all come with large garage doors, plumbing, electrical and the option to do what you want inside – to a degree.
"Being zoned light industrial, we have a whole gamut of businesses that can purchase," said Laing. "We also have a whole gamut of people that can purchase them for whatever personal use they want to buy them for."
So far two businesses and one individual have bought units. Bear Canyon cabinets is set up at one end and Revelstoke Garage has a 2,200 square foot space at the other.
One showcase unit featured an upstairs suite, demonstrating the kind of flexibility offered by the complex. If one chooses, one can build a living suite or office space in the upper space of the units. The units were built with flexibility in mind, so people that buy them can renovate them to fit their needs, said Laing.
However, he added, these aren't meant to be residences, and the strata rules say the longest you can live in one at a time is five consecutive days.
That rule was put in place to allow out-of-town contractors a place to store their equipment and live when they come do work in Revelstoke, said Laing. It also means a recreationalist could have a place to keep their toys rather than always bring them back and forth.
Laing and his wife Phyllis built the business complex on land in the industrial park they owned. They used to use it for the trucking fleet of their cedar shake block business, but as that business slowed, the space opened up and they looked for new uses for it.
Three years ago, Laing started working on the complex, beginning with the environmental assessments and continuing with the rest of the paper work needed to sub-divide and develop the property.
At the opening on Friday, dozens of people came out from the Revelstoke business community and beyond. They got enjoy cake and food and were allowed free reign to explore all the units.
"I think this will present a great opportunity for a lot of small businesses in Revelstoke," said mayor Raven just before the ceremonial ribbon cutting.
The current building is phase one of a potential four phase plan. All the ground work is in place for the second building, which will be built once the first ten units are sold, said Laing.
"If we can pull this off through these economic times, then when things are good it really will be a cake walk," he said.
The smaller units go for $140,000 while the larger ones cost $260,000. For more information visit www.revelstokebusinesscomplex.com.