Six years ago, many citizens were surprised when the city purchased 70 Front St. N., the home of the Metro Plaza.
The price tag — $9.3 million — created some sticker shock in the community and many wondered aloud why the city would suddenly enter the real estate market and become the landlord of a mall.
But it was never about purchasing an asset, stresses Orillia Mayor Steve Clarke. It was, he says, a means to an end.
Joining the mall property with other disparate pieces of land near the plaza would give the city control over a sizable chunk of land that would allow the municipality to “transform” the waterfront and link it to the downtown in a way, Clarke explained, that has eluded city fathers for generations.
“The whole reason we got involved in that property to begin with was because I can’t think of a more strategic location in the city, really,” said the mayor, noting the property is one that can provide the missing link to connect the waterfront to the downtown core.
“To have nine acres, right in between those two, that was underutilized, underdeveloped … it was an opportunity we simply could not pass up,” Clarke told OrilliaMatters.
“If you turned around at the waterfront and looked toward the downtown, you saw a bunch of cinder blocks — certainly not a passage through which you’d have cyclists or pedestrians.”
The mall, while functional and practical to shoppers, has long been Orillia’s version of the mistake by the lake. Legend has it that those who designed it from afar had no idea Lake Couchiching was in its backyard.
So, rather than design it in a way that allowed the lake to be prominent, it essentially became a giant obstacle to the waterfront.
When the city purchased it, one of the primary goals was to raze the southern portion of the plaza to punch Coldwater Street through to the lake. That was completed earlier this year.
Earlier this month, the city announced the sale of the property had been finalized. That transaction culminated a lengthy process that included a request for proposals and request for qualification for developers who could turn the city’s dream into a reality.
FRAM Building Group was chosen from two qualified developers and, once the estimated $17-million Centennial Drive realignment project is complete, will begin — likely in 2024 — what will be a multi-year construction project at the waterfront.
The design concept as submitted by FRAM consists of a mixed-used development that includes waterfront townhomes, an eight-storey condo building at the corner of Coldwater and Front streets, a variety of commercial space, green building practices, pedestrian linkages and more.
The waterfront project is not for the impatient.
“The big, meaningful projects that really are transformational for the community are complex, take a long time and there are speed bumps,” Clarke said, referencing the construction of the Orillia Recreation Centre, the sale of Orillia Power Generation to Hydro One and the waterfront redevelopment.
COST OF THE PROJECT
It hasn’t been cheap, either.
In addition to the $9.3-million purchase price, OrilliaMatters has learned the city has spent an additional $1,671,000 on various costs associated with the project since 2016.
According to city officials, the municipality has spent $730,000 in legal and consulting fees over the course of six years since the property was purchased.
“It is important to note that this includes a variety of legal and consulting requirements as part of this expansive project, including the expertise required to develop the request for qualifications and request for proposal, review of the request for proposal and development agreement, negotiations, expropriation matters, etc.,” said Melissa Gowanlock, the city’s manager of communications.
On top of that, the city spent $270,000 on “due diligence and environmental monitoring.”
It cost taxpayers $465,000 to demolish the southern portion of the plaza, which was quite a bit higher than the original estimate ($300,000).
The city also had to pay “expropriation compensation,” which, to date, totals $206,000.
“Metro expropriation compensation (was) required through the Expropriation Act,” explained Gowanlock.
She said the compensation process as a result of expropriation can be a multi-year process.
“Any future expenses incurred as a result of expropriation compensation would be brought to council for approval,” she said.
While there still could be more expenses, that means to date the city has spent just under $11 million on the purchase and disposition of 70 Front St. N.
That’s more than the city made on the deal to sell the property. According to a media release, FRAM purchased the property for $10.5 million.
The mayor says it’s not about dollars and cents, stressing the deal is a good one for the city over the long term.
He also noted if the city didn’t take the initiative, the site would likely have remained “stagnant” for the foreseeable future.
“It’s a brownfield just like the rec centre,” Clarke explained. “If that didn’t get developed by the city, it might have sat there for decades undeveloped.”
He said FRAM was chosen, in part, because of its history with brownfield development.
“We feel good about that and have really good confidence in FRAM,” said Clarke. “FRAM has a wonderful history of doing just what they say they’re going to do. I’ve spoken with people in other jurisdictions where they’ve been involved … they come in, they understand the community (and) do what they say.”
He noted FRAM has “won multiple awards for a development in Mississauga,” adding that demonstrated past is noteworthy.
Despite that, he said the city is not just turning over the land to be developed as FRAM sees fit.
“We wanted to do a deal with someone who knows about brownfields, but we also wanted to make sure that area, when it was developed … we wanted it to at least match or enhance the character that is Orillia,” said Clarke.
“That was the main motivation: to control the process and open the viewscape,” he added.
He said FRAM had to abide by 12 development principles that were part of the request for proposals and noted the city has other safeguards to ensure the project moves forward as expected.
“Now, we have the building permit process and site plan approvals ... those site plan approvals, from my understanding, are where we control those characteristics ... where we hold them to task,” said Clarke.
