Off the auction block

Council changes course, relying on the track record of the town hall champions

In a year’s time, the Wellington Town Hall will be cut loose from the municipality. Either it will be a thriving community and cultural hub once again—or it will be put on the market and sold. There is, at last, a timeline—a plan—to reopen the doors to the grand old building, an iconic emblem of this village.

Last week, Council reversed an earlier committee decision to declare the building surplus for purposes of a sale. Instead, it accepted the proposal made by the Wellington Town Hall Foundation (Foundation) championed by Christian Zeidler, with the support of the Peta Hall and the Wellington Community Association.

“It will be off your books in 12 months,” Zeidler assured Council.

Peta Hall noted that the hall has served as a prominent facility for celebrations, community gatherings and civic events for several decades. Its central location and exceptional architectural heritage belong to the community, according to Peta Hall.

“We now have the opportunity to get it back,” Hall told Council last week.

NEXT STEPS
Early in the new year, the Foundation will hammer out a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Shire Hall that will define the terms and criteria for the transfer of this asset. The Foundation will have 12 months to meet the terms.

Should the Foundation fail to achieve the milestones to be set in the MOU at the end of 12 months, the property will once again be declared surplus and subsequently sold.

Wellington councillor Corey Engelsdorfer endorsed the Foundation plan at the committee and again at the council meeting last week. His faith is based upon the achievements of the two proponents—Peta Hall and Christian Zeidler.

“[Peta, you have a] track record that proves that whatever you put your mind to turns out amazing,” said Councillor Engelsdorfer. “Christina, too, has a proven track record.”

Hall has driven entrepreneurial and community development in Ghana. She is the dynamo who developed, financed and built a vocational school in Atorkor—a remote seaside village in the African nation. She has, through fierce determination, delivered educational and employment opportunities in this far-flung and neglected corner of the world.

Closer to home, Zeidler led the restoration of the decrepit Gladstone Hotel on Queen West in Toronto. The Gladstone was built in 1889 as a majestic railway hotel, but in recent decades it was better known as a skid row flophouse. In 2000, the Zeidler family purchased the property.
Christina’s father was Eberhard Zeidler, a widely acclaimed architect known for the Eaton Centre, Ontario Place, Queen’s Quay Terminal and Canada Place in Vancouver.

It was Christina, however, who oversaw the redevelopment of the once-proud hotel to what is now described as “a cultural landmark on Queen Street West”. According to another account, the Gladstone is “now pretty much the beating heart of the thriving Queen West scene.”

Both Zeidler and Hall have demonstrated they can build things where others have feared to tread.

“I want to see the building used,” said Councillor Engelsdorfer. “This group has assured me that it has the means and willpower to make this happen.”

Councillor Chris Braney had initiated the committee motion to sell the town hall late in November. But by last week, he, too, had been persuaded that the Foundation’s proposal was worth a 12-month runway to see if it could work.

“My main concern is that these buildings are used,” said Councillor Braney. “There is an opportunity here. I wish them all the best.”

Not every council member was onboard with Council’s turnaround.

Councillor Phil St-Jean worried that giving the building to this group would rob the rest of County ratepayers of the proceeds from a potential sale. He worries, correctly, that Shire Hall has almost no money set aside for capital repairs to its other 90-some buildings.

The balance of the capital sustainability reserve will be $61,243 at the end of 2026. What happens if we have a roof problem on another building?” asked Councillor St-Jean of his colleagues.

Others were relieved to have this needy building off their books. Mayor Steve Ferguson was impressed by Zeidler and Hall.

“I admire the tenacity,” said Mayor Ferguson. “I want to get out of the way. I’d like you guys to go like hell and revive it.”