North Battleford council has given approval to a request by the Civil Air and Rescue Services Association for in-kind space at Cameron McIntosh Airport.
Councillor Brad Pattinson, back by Councillor Trent Houk proposed the motion, passed unanimously following considerable discussion.
CASARA's original request had been for "rent-free" space at the airport, but the actual wording of the resolution was changed to read "in kind" on an amendment from Houk.
CASARA sought to use one room of the North Battleford air terminal building to store equipment that could be used to provide timely and efficient responses to search and rescue requests. With the amendment, however, councillors left the door open for the organization to agree to use less space, as it was noted space is at a premium at the airport.
The issue of providing rent-free space for CASARA was a topic of discussion at a number of council meetings over the past several weeks.
Council previously turned down a request at a meeting in mid-2011. Recently, though, councillors had been reconsidering its position and cited the valuable rescue service the organization provides the area, particularly when looking for missing persons. Several councillors spoke of their support for the work of CASARA in their remarks Monday.
"I'm glad that we are going forward with this," said Houk, who recognized the service the organization provides.
