Filling the final piece of a puzzle, the City of Greater Sudbury has been cleared to expropriate 187 Shaughnessy St. in downtown Sudbury.
The property houses the Wacky Wings restaurant, and is the final property on its block the city has yet to purchase.
Expropriation “does not impede us at all to keep negotiating, but it’s making sure ... that we protect our ability to move in at the timeframe that we want to move to,” Lefebvre explained to our site Sudbury.com after the Nov. 28 city council meeting at which the decision was made.
This timeframe is six to nine months, after which the city will own the property regardless of whether they’ve come to an agreement with its owner.
According to the city’s expropriation policy, the city will present the owner with an offer which includes:
- The market value of the land
- Damages attributable to disturbance
- Damages for injurious affection
- Any special difficulties in relocation
The Market Value of the Land is defined as the “amount that the land might be expected to realize if sold on the open market by a willing seller to a willing buyer.”
Factoring in other potential costs, including relocation, will inevitably inflate whatever price the city ends up paying for the property, Lefebvre told Sudbury.com.
To date, the city has spent $12.5 million purchasing various properties to the east of the Sudbury Community Arena. With the exception of Wacky Wings, they’ve come to agreements with all affected property owners.
With an expropriation process in the works for the lone remaining property, the city will soon own all of the properties enclosed by Brady Street to the north, Shaughnessy Street to the east, Elgin Street to the south and Grey Street to the west.
These funds, plus whatever it costs to expropriate 187 Shaughnessy St., will be drawn from the $90 million in debt the city has already secured toward an arena project.
City council members are expected to decide early next year whether they want to renovate the existing arena or build a new downtown events centre.
The existing Sudbury Community Arena is located at the west side of the block of properties the city owns. Whether the city renovates it or builds something new, whatever land is left over will be used to attract ancillary enterprises to the arena’s immediate vicinity.
“The goal is to stimulate and create that economic hub” around a new arena/events centre, Lefebvre explained last month, adding that by purchasing these properties, the city holds the cards.
Greater Sudbury city council decided during the Nov. 28 closed session to expropriate 187 Shaughnessy St., which they voted on during the public meeting which followed.
The vote was 9-3 in favour of expropriation.
Ward 11 Coun. Bill Leduc, Ward 2 Coun. Michael Vagnini and Ward 7 Coun. Natalie Labbée voted no, and Ward 3 Coun. Gerry Montpellier was not present.
Tyler Clarke covers city hall and political affairs for Sudbury.com.