BIDDEFORD — On Tuesday, the Biddeford City Council unanimously approved the purchase of property at 207 Elm St. for $60,000.

The property is the former home of Le Voltigeur snowshoe club, which closed earlier this year. The property has been for sale for several months.

The council met in executive session to discuss the purchase and had no discussion on the issue when they came out of executive session.

The closing of the deal is scheduled for June 30.

The city is buying the property, said City Manager John Bubier in a telephone interview last week, to make traffic improvements at the intersection of South and Elm streets.

Once the city takes possession of the property, he said, it will tear down the building located there. Slip lanes will be added, he said, to making turning at the intersection easier.

No exact plans have been announced for intersection improvements at this time, said Councilor Michael Ready during a telephone interview on Wednesday. But since “the opportunity came up to purchase the property,” he said, the city took advantage of it.

Improving that intersection has been a topic of discussion for years, said Ready. The city had looked at buying another nearby property, but the owner of that lot, with a multi-family residence located on it, wasn’t interested in selling, he said.

Since the intersection includes a portion of Route 1, the Portland Area Comprehensive Transportation System ”“ a federally mandated organization that coordinates transportation planning in urban areas, including Biddeford ”“ will provide some funding for the engineering of the project, said Ready.

Funding for the property purchase will come from the reserve fund of the current year’s budget, he said.

The city will only use a portion of the property and sell off the remainder, said Ready. This would allow Biddeford to recoup part or all of the cost for the land.

Representatives for Le Voltigeur Snowshoe Club could not be reached prior to press time for comment.

— Staff Writer Dina Mendros can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 324 or [email protected].