A major project intended to revitalize downtown Chatham is one step closer to becoming a reality.
On Monday night, council voted in favour of several staff recommendations regarding the proposed Imagine Chatham-Kent project.
Among the recommendations that were approved include using up to $2-million to further examine the feasibility and what steps would have to be taken to make it happen. The money will be funded through the municipality's Building Lifecycle Reserve.
"This funding is required for professional services, for validation of municipal value received from the proposal, retaining outside legal council to initiate the legal negotiation of the terms of a development agreement with the [group of local investors], additional public consultation, business case assessment, advancing the project scope and the schematic designs by working with the partners to refine the budget estimates and overall project management," explained General Manager of Community Development Bruce McAllister. "Simply put, based on the scale of this proposal, its outstanding questions, risks and public demand for further input, the administration has determined there is currently insufficient capacity internally for the type of due diligence required to advanced this project in a timely, responsible manner."
In early June, a group of local investors who purchased the Downtown Chatham Centre revealed their preliminary redevelopment plans for the site and their plans to revitalize the downtown core.
The plans include a community hub and promenade with a new city hall, a public library, a museum inside the former Sears building, an entertainment complex with a new municipally-owned 4,000-seat hockey arena, and a local sports hall of fame in the middle.
The proposal is divided into three phases.
Phase One includes the redevelopment of the former Sears portion of the Downtown Chatham Centre into a facility capable of hosting current operations from the Civic Centre, Chatham Library, and the Museum and Art Gallery portions of the Cultural Centre. This phase will also include the construction of the adjacent promenade and transferring a repaired parking garage to the Municipality.
Phase Two includes the construction of the entertainment complex along with a privately retained commercial segment along King Street.
Phase Three will be privately retained for future development, including possible housing or a hotel.
According to the report that went to council, the first two phases would cost the Municipality between $113-million-$123-million.
Also approved on Monday night was the Municipality putting out a request for proposal (RFP) to obtain an independent firm to oversee several aspects of the next phase of due diligence.
According to McAllister, the goal is to have the firm provide final recommendations on the scope and direction of the next steps for Phase One by February 2023. A report on Phase Two would come in April.
During the meeting, Ward 3 Councillor Steve Pinsonneault said that although he has no doubt the project would revitalize Chatham-Kent, he worries that from a financial standpoint, it's not feasible.
"I think once we commit $2-million in due diligence for this project, the train's going to leave the station with no return," Pinsonneault said. "There is no possible way this community can afford $125-million. Unless someone tells me there's money coming from somewhere else, it's not possible, even in stages."
As a result, Pinsonneault put forward a motion to push back deciding on the recommendations until after the next council takes office, following the municipal election later this year. Pinsonneault's motion failed 4-13.
Chatham-Kent Chief Financial Officer Gord Quinton said although there are currently no direct grant programs to assist with the project at the provincial or federal level, he's not ruling out the possibility down the line.
Quinton added that the more steps that are taken ahead of time, the more "shelf-ready" and planned out the project becomes, which would be a requirement to apply for any upper-level government grants.
Mayor Darrin Canniff said he's also optimistic about working with upper levels of government.
"We're not going to leave any rock unturned," Canniff said. "I've been in extensive conversations with MPPs and discussions to anyone and everyone at senior levels of government that we're looking for [grants.] We will be exploring all those options on how to fund this."
If the project does not come to fruition, McAllister said the work being done with the $2-million will still be beneficial.
"If nothing else, at the end of the day, I certainly think it's going to help inform future councils on future decisions in regard to our municipal assets one way or another," he said. "You're going to have a feasibility study with regard to the need for an entertainment complex and an arena, a better handle on the costs of consolidating municipal facilities, and future reporting on the costs of maintaining our existing assets. It's certainly not lost value in terms of money that will be spent as part of this due diligence."
Additionally, council designated Imagine Chatham-Kent as a priority project on Monday night due to its “alignment with council’s strategic term priorities and various previously approved plans, policies and strategies."
According to staff, the designation is intended to transparently identify the project as warranting further resources necessary to determine, in a responsible and timely manner, its overall value for taxpayer dollars, business validity, and to ensure final decisions regarding scope reflect the current and future needs of the community. The designation does not imply that any final decision on projects was made. Additional reports will be brought to council when the project is at a stage where approval decisions can be considered.
All of the staff's recommendations passed 14 to 2
You can read the 12-page staff report that went to council on Monday night by clicking here.