The council this week agreed to seek a new lease that would include an option to buy properties at 1 Kendall Street and 8 and 10 Kane Road by June 30, 2021.

A team of 57, consisting of 20 parks, 19 gardens, 16 road and two administrative staff, work from the linked sites.

They are owned by Border firms Wilval and Rojan Developments with leases to the council dating back to 2010 and 2013.

Staff advised councillors that "the purchase of the depot has very good merit and will result in a positive cash and profit outcome".

"Council holds sufficient cash reserves and has sufficient land sale potential to self-fund the purchase in the short to medium term while rent savings will ultimately cover the full cost over time," the managers declared.

The purchase of the depot land would not occur until after next year's council election, with councillors saying it was appropriate for the new representatives to finalise a detail given that situation.

The spectre of borrowings being needed to fund the deal was raised by councillors.

Councillor Ron Mildren suggested large loans may not be necessary, while colleague Danny Lowe said it was debatable whether borrowings would be required, suggesting savings and other means may underwrite the outlay.

Mayor Anna Speedie was reticent to say how the purchase may be bankrolled.

"I'm a bit careful about pre-empting what a future council might do and how they might fund it and how that might happen, because times change and we don't know what is in the future," Cr Speedie said.

"But the thinking is absolutely spot on."

The council's depot has been in the Kendall Industrial Estate since 2002 after moving from a site in Howard Street which was rented from a company associated with Mars Petcare.