While the owner of the old hospital site may have fallen out of favour with the City of Sault Ste. Marie, it's currently on the right side of keeping its tax bills for the long-vacant, decrepit buildings — described by the city's mayor as a "blight on our waterfront" — paid off after falling into tax arrears over the past two years.
Tax certificates obtained by SooToday for both the former General Hospital and the Plummer Hospital properties — also known by their civic addresses, 941 and 995 Queen St. E, respectively — show there are no outstanding balances owed by owner Leisure Meadows Community Living Inc. to the municipality.
The Woodbridge, Ont. real estate developer recently put part of the land known as the old renal building property on the seller’s market for $3.6 million — more than four times the $850,000 that Leisure Meadows paid for the former Plummer property in 2019.
Mayor Matthew Shoemaker did not mince words when asked last week to comment on the real estate listing.
“The site of the former renal building and General Hospital are a blight on our waterfront area, and the lack of action from the owner is well documented and visibly demonstrable to anyone who walks or drives past the area," Sault Ste. Marie Mayor Matthew Shoemaker wrote in an email to SooToday last week. "I am beyond disappointed with the lack of development at that location despite public pronouncements to the contrary. I am very confident that our community will be better off with new ownership.
"I continue to meet with city staff about this issue on a regular basis, and our bylaw enforcement team will keep doing whatever it can to ensure compliance with the property standards bylaw," he continued.
As SooToday first reported in May, Leisure Meadows has taken the city to court, arguing it is “exercising authority it does not have” by demanding the property have 24/7 security and $2-million worth of liability insurance. It’s anticipated the next hearing will not take place in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice until next year.
While the tax certificates for both the General and Plummer hospital properties show no balances owing for unpaid property taxes, an affidavit filed by the City of Sault Ste. Marie for that court action this past June reveals another layer: both properties were actually in tax arrears in both 2022 and 2023.
Leisure Meadows made a payment of $33,039 in April for outstanding taxes on the former renal unit property, leaving a balance of $940 still owing at the time.
Another payment of $17,119 was made for tax arrears on the former General Hospital property at the same time, with a balance of $516 still outstanding at the time the affidavit was filed in court.
According to the tax certificates for the former hospital properties, $19,300 in taxes have been levied on the former renal unit property and more than $7,900 levied on the former General Hospital site so far this year.