I think we Canadians traded the Suffield wasteland for some gently used submarines. We thought we were making like bandits, but in the end it may have been the Brits who got the better of the deal.
All kidding aside though, when the time comes that a better deal is had by a military, they do not throw good money after bad. The Germans here in Shilo (GATES) had some terrific workshops, with huge overhead cranes. There was a lot of good shop equipment, PMQ furnishings, etc etc, that all went onto the chopping block. We used to line up at 7 in the morning in November waiting for the sales to open. Workbenches were $5 each....$10 if they had a vice on them. Work platforms were also $5 each, and mess hall stacking chairs were $1 each, with hundreds to be had.
As to the buildings themselves, if the Canadian Forces wanted to use any of them, then we had to pay book value for them. As a result, most were demolished while some were sold off to be moved. I picked up a few good buildings very cheap back in those days.
Of course, all the military pattern vehicles went back The only things we bought from them vehicle wise were the German Commanders staff car (an old full size LTD which I think we paid $1 for and sent off to CADC a few months later), a couple of the unimog range control trucks (also sent to CADC within 6 months...we made money on those) and their fairly new MCI scenic cruiser bus, which I think may still be kicking around the base. A number of German military bicycles were sold off through CADC as well, I think Gordon Falk got one.
End of the day, when it's time to go, it's time to go.
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04-12-12, 01:19
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