The Town of South Bruce Peninsula is buying the old Sobeys Foodland property by Bluewater Park in Wiarton and will consider it for a new town hall location
Mayor Jay Kirkland tells Bayshore Broadcasting News the Town will have architects and consultants conduct assessments of the property to see if renovating the old grocery store to serve a new purpose would be a possibility. The Sobey’s Foodland relocated to Frank Street in 2016.
Kirkland visualizes the property as a potential one-stop service location, brainstorming the possibility of a town hall and town offices as well as possibly the library, a Service Ontario or Service Canada location, meeting spaces for local groups and other potential uses.
The price tag on the property is $1.25 million. CAO Bill Jones says in a report to council, the purchase is being funded through the Working Capital Reserve (which currently sits at $3.3 million) and also with about $244,000 in leftover proceeds from the 2015 sale of the Wiarton Keppel International Airport to Georgian Bluffs. The other half of that money from the airport sale was used to buy a property on Jenny Street in Wiarton which was previously considered as a possible location for a new town hall, rec centre or community hub, but the potential cost of a large scale new build created reluctance to push ahead, and council chose to prioritize a town hall.
Kirkland notes the existing town hall building on Berford Street in Wiarton was chosen decades ago during amalgamation as it was the biggest suitable building at the time with the hope of one day building a bigger location. “Well, you know what happens,” says Kirkland, “You just keep going along and fitting people into corners.” He adds, “We’ve got to do a major renovation, repairs, roof, the windows are all pretty well done, the insulation factor isn’t there and the HVAC needs replacing. We’ve got to spend a lot of money on that building. Is it the location that we want to spend a lot of money on?”
A staff report adds that even if the existing town hall was renovated, parking and accessibility would still be an issue. Staff say currently, there is a lack of space, the heating, ventilation and cooling system is failing and there are leaks in the windows and roof.
Kirkland says, an attractive characteristic of the Sobey’s property is it is one level, and more wheelchair accessible than the current town hall. “That’s one of the big problems we have in our building right now is there are three different levels.”
A Town release notes the former Sobey’s property also has plenty of parking.
Kirkland says exploring the property as a potential town hall location is in the early stages, noting, “This isn’t going to be a quick process. We’re going to make sure the public is involved with this process all long and get everybody’s opinions. We’re not trying to hide anything, we’re trying to do the best thing for South Bruce Peninsula.”
