By TREENA MIELKE
Rimbey town council has given the go ahead to its CAO to further investigate an offer by Guardian Ambulance Service to purchase the town’s ambulance service.
At its regular meeting March 23, council voted unanimously to instruct Tony Goode to meet with Guardian Ambulance and Alberta Health Services regarding the offer.
An offer to purchase letter to Goode from Glen Holly, CEO of Guardian Ambulance Ltd. States Guardian Ambulance Ltd. recognizes council’s desire to divest from the provision of ambulance services as soon as possible and would consider it a privilege to provide emergency medical services to the town upon approval from Alberta Health Services.
“Our intent is to provide service from within the Town of Rimbey by utilization of the current EMS building. As such, Guardian Ambulance Ltd. is prepared to make an offer to the Town of Rimbey of $400,000 for its EMS station, ambulances and equipment.”
The offer to purchase is subject to the approval of Alberta Health Services and a contract between AHS and Guardian Ambulance Ltd. which would be drawn up by April 1, 2012.
In its offer to purchase letter, Guardian Ambulance states it proposes to make monthly lease to purchase payments of $6,500 to the Town of Rimbey until March 31, 2012. After that date, the remaining money owed would be paid out in full, provided the ambulance service was successful in contracting with Alberta Health Services.
If Guardian Ambulance Ltd. were not to succeed in contracting with Alberta Health Services for April 1, 2012, the Holly states all monthly lease to purchase payments would be kept by the Town of Rimbey and all assets involved in the proposed sale would revert back to the town.
Council agreed the offer to purchase was worth pursuing and noted it was positive that Guardian wanted to purchase the emergency medical services station as well as the equipment.
“I think this is a good offer,” said Coun. Joe Anglin. “It is a known quantity and it exceeds what we expected.”
Guardian Ambulance Ltd. operates in Ponoka, Innisfail and Sylvan Lake.
The offer to purchase comes on the heels of council’s decision to terminate its contract with Alberta Health Services.