The City of Greater Sudbury is in the process of purchasing the entire triangle-shaped block of land on which the shuttered Ledo Hotel building currently stands.
The announcement was made during Tuesday’s city council meeting, at which the city was authorized to buy additional property around the old hotel building.
The total property acquisition expense, which a city spokesperson told Sudbury.com sits at approximately $2 million to date (including the Ledo Hotel building), will be funded by the Event Centre Project Capital (Kingsway Entertainment District) account.
This expense reflects property acquisition alone, with things such as demolition and the potential construction of a parking lot coming at additional expense.
Last month, the city announced their impending purchase of the old Ledo Hotel building (and not yet the lands to the east), at a cost of $900,000.
Rather than risk the building remaining vacant any longer, or having an investor purchase it only to sit on it for an extended period of time, Mayor Paul Lefebvre told Sudbury.com at the time that city council wanted to take advantage of the fact the building was up for sale now.
Existing city bylaws lack the teeth to force property owners to maintain their buildings at levels some deem acceptable, which Lefebvre said city council will be investigating.
At the time, Lefebvre said the purchase of additional properties will be investigated on a case-by-case basis as they come up for sale.
With the city now in the process of purchasing land to the immediate east of the Ledo Hotel building, which includes a parking lot and a building with apartments and office space, the city will soon own the entire triangle-shaped block.
All structures on the block are slated for demolition.
The space is enclosed by Van Horne Street to the north, Shaughnessy Street to the east, and Elgin Street abutting it to the south and west.
The Event Centre Project Capital account being used to purchase the properties originally consisted of a $90-million debenture the city took out to pay for an events centre on The Kingsway.
City council voted down the project last year, after already spending what was then estimated to have been approximately $5.2 million of the debenture.
The city’s latest expenditure estimate is $6.5 million ($4.9 million on the project, plus $1.6 million in legal, business consulting and other costs). With an additional $2 million spent on the Ledo Hotel and area property, approximately $81.5 remains of the original debenture.
A city spokesperson noted that detailed costs will be provided in the next update to city council in September.
Tyler Clarke covers city hall and political affairs for Sudbury.com.
