Ward 10 Coun. Fern Cormier says he's been in contact with the the company that owns the former hospital at Bell Park in hopes of getting them to address concerns about the stalled condominium project.
On Friday, Panoramic Properties formally announced the $80 million development is on hold as it focuses on other holdings in other cities.
“In the last four years, since the purchase of the 700 Paris St. site, Panoramic Properties has constructed approximately 300 residential units at two other locations in Sudbury, namely the 1310 Nesbitt Drive and the 347 Hyland Drive,” the release said.
“At these locations, the company completed a development that was approved many years ago by the city known as the Serbian Village and engaged in the adaptive re-use of the Old St. Denis School. The oversight of the construction process at these locations was directly managed by the company’s principal, Angelo Butera.”
Butera, a resident of Niagara on the Lake, has lived in Sudbury for the last four years, the release said, to oversee the construction of both projects.
After spending so much time and focus in Sudbury, the release said Butera needs to spend time in other areas on other projects to “to properly balance the company’s portfolio.”
That leaves the project in limbo, and residents and visitors near Bell Park with a derelict-looking building for an undetermined amount of time.
Cormier said Tuesday he contacted Panoramic and is hoping they will voluntarily clean up the look of the site.
The building has been checked by city building and fire officials, Cormier said, as well as the Ministry of Labour. As long as the building passes safety checks, the city's options are limited.
"From a rules and regulations point of view, there's really not much that can be done in situations like this," he said. "I understand the confusion. A lot of people are saying, well, if I did this to my house, property standards would prevent me from leaving my house in that condition.
"The difference is, if something is designated as a construction site, then property standards don't apply. We're not going to tell you to mow your lawn on a construction site."
While demolition permits for two buildings have been issued, no building permits have been taken out on the property. So while some people on social media have been calling for permits to be revoked, “there's nothing for us to revoke.
"And Panoramic have indicated to me that the delay has nothing to do with the city not issuing permits or not doing our job. Really, it's their timelines and the other projects they have on the go right now."
The only legal step the city could take is if the project is deemed abandoned, where there's no activity on the site for a year or more. But defining what 'no activity' means can be tricky, and the city's preference is to work cooperatively with Panoramic, rather than end up in a difficult court fight.
"As you can imagine, it's a high bar, as it should be, because you're talking about the state taking over private property," Cormier said. “Having said that, I drive by it every day. I don't like looking at it like that more than anyone else."
Panoramic have indicated to him they are willing to look at what they can do to at least clean up the look of the building while the development is being mothballed.
"I've asked they look at what they might be able to do to at least mitigate some of the things on the site, especially considering they are going to be waiting for a little while," Cormier said, adding he hopes to have more information by the end of the week.
"The dialogue with Panoramic will continue, and I hope, like everybody else, to see the project moving forward sooner rather than later," he said. "As long as our inspectors keep going in and deeming that it's a safe site, there's not a whole lot we can do to make them hurry up and spend their money. It is private property."
