ASSINIBOIA — Ever since stories began circulating that the building that houses the Assiniboia Times was sold, the rumour mill started churning. Residents wondered if this was the end of the century-old local newspaper.
Linda Hall, the woman of many titles at the Times affirms that the newspaper is staying put and in fact, has just signed a lease with the new owners. While there will be some moving of inventory, spaces and other situational “stuff” at the existing Times office, to make way for the new owner and new business, it will not affect the weekly newspaper.
Gayland Panko, the new owner of this property, tells the Assiniboia Times and SASKTODAY.ca, “I’m really excited about this purchase. It’s a great opportunity to have a space that works well for both the Assiniboia Times and my real estate businesses. My focus is on making the building practical, comfortable, and a good fit for everyone who uses it. I’m looking forward to seeing it come together and being part of the community in a new way.”
Panko & Associates, which includes Royal LePage Next Level and Panko Commercial Farm & Ranch, will soon be part of the Assiniboia Times building.
“The building was listed for sale on Oct. 7, and I acted immediately. Within three hours of seeing the listing, I called, wrote an offer, and had it accepted. After completing my due diligence, the sale officially closed, and the titles were transferred on Nov. 8,” affirmed Panko.
The new owner says for now his plans are to make the space better for the Assiniboia Times staff. He recognizes he will be unable to fully use the space immediately because he needs approval from the Real Estate Commission before opening a full-service real estate branch office. In the meantime, it will be a place for him to meet with clients and work while in Assiniboia.
“Once approved, I plan to set up a dedicated office for my work and create additional closing offices and a boardroom. These spaces will be perfect for collaborating with clients, especially when working on larger land deals or group discussions.”
Panko also affirms that it was important to him to retain the Assiniboia Times as the main tenant and he has always appreciated working with Hall, noting he intends to keep them as tenants as long as the building lasts.
“I promised Linda I would install some new flooring throughout the entire building and I plan on renovating for future office use. Basically, I am trying to freshen up the interior. We will be working on constantly improving it over time,” says the new building’s owner.
Acknowledging that he had been looking for a future location for a real estate office for when he comes to Assiniboia, the search has been on for approximately a year.
“None of the buildings for sale were exactly what I was looking for, and I had considered a couple other shared locations, but they just didn't click. This building made perfect sense for us to share the space and I think we can really make it a nice comfortable place to work. The location is accessible and easy to find,” notes Panko.
Most of Panko’s team works out of Moose Jaw and a couple of other agents are located in Regina and Lafleche. The realtor said he was always driving to Assiniboia and all over south country so this will be of great benefit to have a central location to meet with clients.
Assiniboians will be relieved to know their local paper will continue its work while also appreciating another new business coming to their community. It is good news all around and a new, positive story to share around coffee tables.
