LAURIE WEIR
The Township of Rideau Lakes will look at a more fulsome option for renovations to the municipal offices in Chantry at a cost of $137,120 for the report, to be provided by IDEA.
Against staff’s recommendation to build new offices on a more urban site, councillors debated the issue at length during a regular meeting of the municipal services committee on Oct. 15.
Ahead of the vote Mayor Arie Hoogenboom said this may be cause for a referendum, which can come at any time, not just at election, as Coun. Jeff Banks suggested.
Coun. Paula Banks said the initial request for a renovation cost on the municipal offices in Chantry was side railed into a comparison report. She asked for a new motion to return to the original request after the staff recommendation was defeated. This was passed by a recorded vote with councillors Paula Banks, Jeff Banks, Deborah Ann Hutchings, Sue Dunfield and Linda Carr voting for it.
“I don’t really care where this facility gets built,” the mayor said, as a new building in a place like Elgin or Crosby would be “a better option than trying to piece this thing together.”
The estimated cost for the new build was $3.869 million, including potential land acquisition. Staff suggested this option due to the inefficiencies of the current Chantry office, a steel Butler building that limits energy efficiency improvements. Renovating the existing structure would likely be more expensive than new construction, given the extensive repairs needed, the analysis by IDEA suggests.
