SASKATOON -- Kerry Receveur wants to buy land that would add to his non-profit’s main facility on 40th Street East.

With the extra land, KIN Enterprises would relocate its production facility.

The facility, currently located on 15th Avenue East, prepares people with disabilities for employment by making items such as benches and garden planters.

Moving the production facility to a more industrial area would benefit KIN Enterprises in several ways, said Receveur, such as providing “more of a sense of community.”

“When you have two-thirds of participants in one location and another third in another location, you get that segregation,” he said.

Additionally, residents surrounding the current location complain about the truck traffic, dust and smell.

Receveur said he’s been trying to purchase land surrounding KIN Enterprises’ main facility since 2013.

He said he made an offer at the beginning of May for $188,000 per acre. Mayor Greg Dionne said the city is asking $250,000 per acre because the land is ready for development.

Receveur said the city told him the offer was too low to bring to City Council.

Dionne, however, said the request to bring the offer to council for discussion was never made through the city clerk.

"I'm kind of shocked because he knows the procedure. They've been to council before and on this matter, I checked with the city clerk and they have never made a request to speak to council,” said Dionne.

Receveur said KIN Enterprises does not pay property taxes as a non-profit organization, and claims the mayor says that’s why the city can’t sell the land to them at a discounted price.

“They’ve decided that it shouldn’t even go to city council, which I thought was quite odd because that’s what council’s there for, is to make these decisions. It’s not up to the mayor or the city manager to make these decisions,” he said.

Receveur said this is the fourth time KIN Enterprises has made an offer to buy the land. He said two of those offers did not go to city council for discussion.

Ward 3 Coun. Evert Botha took to Facebook to say he’s “disappointed” that the offer wasn’t brought before council.

“This seems like it would have been the perfect opportunity to sell some land and mend the very important relationship with KIN Enterprises Inc.,” wrote Botha.