With thoughts of expansion in mind, the County of Wellington has purchased three Downtown Guelph buildings from the Wellington Catholic District School Board.
Announced Thursday, the county bought 59, 69 and 75 Woolwich St. – directly across the road from the Sleeman Centre – for $5.56 million.
The county’s head office is located at 74 Woolwich St.
A joint news release from the county and school board notes the newly purchased space will be used for “future office space and parking.”
As explained in the release, county officials approached the school board about potentially buying the properties, with county council approving the purchase idea last June.
Since then, the two entities have been negotiating a purchase price.
It’s unclear what impact, if any, the purchase will have on county council discussions about moving its headquarters outside of Guelph.
It would be “premature” to assume the property sale will put an end to that idea, said Warden Andy Lennox.
“I think this is part of a broader discussion about staff accommodation,” Lennox said of the purpose of the newly purchased properties.
Both 59 and 69 Woolwich St. are on Guelph's municipal register of cultural heritage properties but are not designated for protection under the Ontario Heritage Act.
Efforts to reach WCDSB officials about what will happen with its office operations weren’t immediately successful.
