Demolition of the old hospital building on Paris Street has begun, with a pile of rubble from the building’s interior already stacked north of the main building.
Mayor Paul Lefebvre will be on site at 11 a.m. on Friday to meet with local journalists.
As his office described in a media release, Lefebvre will “provide an update on a site of significant community interest, marking an important step forward in local development efforts.”
Meanwhile, heavy machinery has begun assembling on site, and the mayor’s office has confirmed that a demolition permit application has been submitted, which is currently under review by city staff.
Last week, Sudbury.com took note of “danger due to demolition” signs which had gone up around the building’s fencing, and a worker on site who was not authorized to speak on behalf of the property’s ownership at Panoramic Properties said it would be coming down soon.
“After 15 years, residents will finally see the eyesore come down,” Ward 7 Coun. Natalie Labbée wrote on social media in response to last week’s story. “This is great news with more new housing developments as a result.”
Consistent with past attempts at correspondence, Panoramic Properties has not responded to Sudbury.com’s inquiries.
On May 22, a day after a fire broke out at the old hospital and a few days after a body was found on the property, Mayor Paul Lefebvre urged “immediate, urgent action” for Panoramic Properties to tear down the building.
Lefebvre said at the time that city staff have been instructed to fast-track whatever bureaucracy is needed to get the demolition plan safely approved.
The old hospital was sold to Panoramic Properties in 2010 and has remained vacant since.
Last year, city council members greenlit Panoramic Properties’ plan to construct 530 residential units in three buildings on the property.
The southernmost building is slated to be a 12-storey, 109-guest-unit retirement home, with 85 square metres of restaurant space for a café on the ground floor, open to the public.
The middle building is to be a 20-storey, 222-unit condominium project with 288 square metres of restaurant space on the top floor, plus 139 square metres of covered rooftop terrace space.
The northernmost building is to be a 16-storey, 199-unit urban loft/studio apartment building.
In late April 2024, Tulloch Engineering planning manager Kevin Jarus told city council members that Panoramic Properties’ intent was to have the project under construction “within five years.”
Tyler Clarke covers city hall and political affairs for Sudbury.com.