Parkland Fertilizers celebrated the groundbreaking of their new facility which will commence construction in May, 2015 at their new location south of Co-op and Martin Deerline. City and County officials joined owners, management and staff of Parkland Fertilizers at the field which will become an impressive addition to the agricultural supply industry of the region.
Parkland’s previous location on 49th street has been a fixture of Wetaskiwin’s landscape since 1976. As modern needs have changed and time has passed, the facility has aged and become more cramped. “The city just grew up around us,” says Matthew Krutzfeld, co-owner of Parkland. “Our new location will have the cabability to better serve our customers and be more accessible for farmers.” Over the years, equipment has changed and the input volumes have magnified, requiring more space and the ability to provide greater quantities of fertilizer, seed and chemical.
With construction slated to begin next month, the plan calls for the fertilizer plant to be built first along with the new storage facilities. The storage ability alone will see a significant increase from the previous site. In time, plans include the addition of a maintenance shop and office space.
A fascinating part of this story is the partnership Parkland Fertilizers has formed with the City and County of Wetaskiwin. One of the significant hurdles the City of Wetaskiwin has had to overcome is the lack of what is called, “shovel ready” property which is greatly desired for businesses willing and wanting to relocate to the Wetaskiwin area. Companies want to purchase property that is ‘ready to go’. What they dread is having to engage in potentially multiple years of obtaining permits, dealing with zoning issues and development difficulties caused by unforeseen circumstances. A progressive thinking city has to have a plan in place to continually be able to offer such properties to potential new industry and business.
The Parkland facility is an example of how this forward thinking can play out. This was clearly evident as Parkland Fertilizer’s co-owners Pattie Ganske, Barry Schultz and Matthew Krutzfeldt shared and chatted with guests, along with Wetaskiwin’s Mayor Bill Elliot, councilors and county officials at the groundbreaking event. The event marked a substantial milestone of seeing the growth and future of the company come to fruition.