The mayor of Merritt says new overtures are being offered to Edison Motors to try to keep the electric-hybrid logging truck manufacturer from leaving the city — including the possibility of a home on municipal-owned land.

Mike Goetz says while he’s been acting as a facilitator between Edison and local land owners to find the space needed to fit the company’s needs, he says he’s also offered up 4 acres of refurbished land at the Merritt Airport which the company could use as a start-up option.

“We are redoing our airport. We have some earthworks going up there where we can actually end up with about 4 acres that we could possibly lease to them on a term basis to get them started,” Goetz told Radio NL.  “He [Edison co-founder Eric Little] said that would work. They’d be able to get about 25 trucks out a year.”

Goetz suggests this would likely be a bridging solution to help keep Edison in Merritt while other opportunities potentially arise.

“If that’s where we have to start, where they can finally get their business up, and then possibly borrow against that as they move on to buy more land, and that’s what we could help them out with,” said Goetz.  “We’re here to help them out.”

Despite this, Goetz suggests he’s also realistic about the overall situation.

“We dearly would love to keep them here, and we are working in that direction,” said Goetz.  “But ultimately if they have to relocate to another community because there’s just no land availability here, then unfortunately, that’s what has to happen.”

Edison Motors — co-founded by two men born and raised in Merritt — recently revealed plans to move to Terrace due to a lack of available land space in their home town.

They recently revealed they are awaiting rezoning on land in the northwestern BC community ahead of a move there.

Editors Note:  Radio NL has reached out to Edison Motors on the offer, but has thus far not heard back from the company.