The City of Sarnia has won a partial victory in its dispute with Bluewater Health over the former Sarnia General Hospital, but the legal wrangling is not over.
The Ontario Superior Court of Justice has ruled the city does not have to pay over $112,000 in legal costs, incurred by the hospital, in litigation to determine ownership of the buildings on the Mitton St. site.
In late May, Justice Scott Campbell determined the city is the owner, but in a further ruling issued October 14, he says each party will bear its own court costs. Justice Campbell says the city was acting in the public interest by seeking to legally resolve the ownership question.
Mayor Mike Bradley doesn't consider the decision on legal costs to be a victory for the city.
"Both bodies are funded by the taxpayers so it will be taxpayers that pay those costs, no matter what," says Bradley. "I think the key issue now is to find a way to move forward, to resolve these issues. That building has stood there too long, and we need to have that building down and we need to start building up that neighbourhood again."
City solicitor Scott McEachran, however, says the municipality is now pursuing compensation, after the court in its decision on ownership, recognized the city has suffered a loss as a result of hospital activities on the property.
McEachran says a new claim will be filed in a couple of months, seeking yet unspecified damages.
That doesn't sit well with Bradley.
"We are two of the most major public bodies in this community and it's not acceptable that we would continue to spend tax dollars in conflict with each other," says Bradley.
Estimates of the cost of demolition of the former hospital have ranged from $3-million to $8.8-million with the province offering to contribute only $75,000.