Vittoria Town Hall and Properties

A recording of the Vittoria Properties in-person engagement session presentation on November 22, 2023, at the Vittoria and District Community Centre is available below.

Questions and Answers

Thank you to everyone who provided feedback, asked questions, and attended the in-person engagement session. The following questions were asked by residents online and at the in-person session.

Q1: I attended the town hall meeting in Vittoria last night. I want to thank the staff for their time and for giving an informative presentation. It’s a tough job to please everyone and stay within budget. Hopefully a plan can be created to keep the old Town Hall so that the residents can enjoy the building. Some of the comments of the local people who spoke were not helpful and the staff handled the inappropriate and misinformation as best they could. Again, thank you for your time.

A: Thank you for your comment and feedback.

Q2: I think the issue of the town hall in Vittoria should be dealt with separately as it quite a different issue and impacts more than just green space use.

A: Thank you for your comment and feedback.

Q3: What happened to the beautiful curtains, stage floor and piano that were in the Vittoria town hall building?

The county leased the building and since then these parts of the building appear to be missing. If these were stolen there should be a police report made or if the renter/lessee took them they should be made to return them.

What is the County doing to find or restore these important fixtures in the Vittoria Town Hall building?

A: In 2020, Norfolk County issued a Call for Submissions (CS-CSS-20-03) to prospective proponents to submit Proposals from community partners and/or operators interested in operating or supporting select community assets to reduce the taxpayer support for facilities. As a result of this Call for Submissions, a License Agreement was signed which provided the Licensee permission to complete building renovations/improvements to all non-heritage designated building components, at their cost, to improve the functionality of the space. A full stage renovation was included as part of the building renovations, however, was not fully completed due to the discovery of the larger building issues.

Q4: Why was no maintenance done on the windows of the Town Hall. They were maintained for 130 years and in the last 20 there was no maintenance and now we have to pay $300,000. to repair them?

A: Norfolk County owns and maintains 250 buildings. The portfolio of Norfolk County facilities is aging rapidly and the general condition of County facilities is deteriorating. With very limited resources, required maintenance in some facilities must be deferred to address building deficiencies in other areas in the portfolio.

Q5: When will the next public meeting(s) take place?

A: Public feedback will be compiled into a report and taken to Council. If Council takes action on a piece of property in Vittoria, another meeting will be scheduled at that time.

Q6: Why hasn’t Norfolk County taken care of the building (Vittoria Town Hall)?

A: Please see question 4.

Q7: Is a vacant parcel of land able to become a food forest?

A: Staff and council would be open to various ideas and options regarding vacant properties.

Q8: Will traffic/water studies and sustainability reports be part of the process if Council decides to sell surplus land to a developer?

A: Yes - planning, building, environmental and GIS staff and other pertinent departments would investigate and be part of the process.

Q9: Can there be a second opinion on the amount of work needed to be done on certain buildings (Vittoria Town Hall) and can a local contractor be hired to assess the hall and provide an estimate?

A: There are protocols that must be followed as a municipality. The county, by law, cannot simply give work to a local business, we must follow a competitive process based on the Provincial Municipal Act.

Q10: Has the fate of any buildings or lots already been decided?

A: No. A report based on staff and public feedback will go to Council, at which time a decision on the properties and buildings will be made.

Q11: Could the community fundraise for the repairs needed for a County building in question?

A: If there is a community effort to raise money for the repairs, staff will be willing to speak with the group in hopes of crafting an agreement.

Q12: Can work on buildings in questions be done all at once or in stages?

A: Yes, however work is recommended to be done in an effort to keep costs lower than if done in portions.

Q13: Do building reviews take into account community impact and history?

A: Yes, Norfolk County staff and Council will take into account what these properties and buildings bring to, and mean to, their towns before making any recommendations and decisions.

Q14: What is the real estate value of the current Vittoria Town Hall?

A: Those numbers would be determined by a real estate appraisal, which at this time has not been completed.

Q15: Why not take money needed for building studies and put it into the Town Hall?

A: Should a property be put up for sale for development, part of the process would require a geotechnical study. No funding has been set aside for Norfolk County to do that study at this time. If any additional properties are declared surplus and sold, that could generate funding for required studies.

Q16: Could a community group take responsibility for renting and covering expenses with the Vittoria Town Hall?

A: Norfolk County is willing to work with any local group that may have ideas for the future of the hall.

Q17: 300K was allocated to repair Vittoria Town Hall? What has happened to that money?

A: Due to the extensive additional building repairs required to repair the Vittoria Old Town Hall, the $300,000 capital project was cancelled, and a new, more comprehensive capital project has been included in the 2024-2033 Capital Plan in 2025 for $1,000,000 to complete the initial necessary structural and building repairs

Q18: What happened to all the furniture and things inside the Vittoria Town Hall when it was leased out? (piano, backdrop, curtains)

A: Same answer as Q3. All unused furniture and accessories have been kept in storage or relocated.

Q19: Where can community members go with suggestions or possible solutions?

A: Community members can make a deputation to Council, and contact members of staff to have their ideas heard.

Q20: Why look at selling land that could be used in the future?

A: Staff would not suggest selling land that could be of better use in the future. Staff takes into consideration a number of factors, most notably the need for local infrastructure in considering deeming certain properties surplus.

Norfolk County invites members of the community to a second in-person community engagement session for the Vittoria Town Hall.

The event will be held on Monday, March 18, 2024, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., with doors opening at 5:45 p.m., in Council Chambers at the County Administration Building, located at 50 Colborne Street, Simcoe.

Share your ideas and suggestions

Community members are invited to provide ideas and suggestions on the future of the Vittoria Town Hall at the in-person event on Monday, March 18, 2024, using the EngageNorfolk feedback survey on this page. Staff will review questions, ideas, and suggestions provided in advance and share more information at the in-person session.

A recording of the Vittoria Old Town Hall Public Engagement session on March 18, 2024, at Norfolk County Council Chambers is available below.

Agenda

Date: Monday, March 18th, 2024
Time: 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Place: Council Chambers, County Administration Building

1. Welcome and introductions
   1. Meeting is being recorded
2. Housekeeping items
3. Recap of last meeting
4. Questions & Answer Period
   1. Each speaker will only be allowed one time at podium
   2. Will keep track of names of each speaker
5. Closing
   1. No other meetings to held
   2. Staff report

Q21. What happened to the curtains, backdrop, piano, etc.?

The piano previously located within the Vittoria Old Town Hall has been relocated to the Vittoria and District Community Centre.

In reviewing the lease agreement, items not needed for use could be disposed of by the Lessee.

Q22 a. Who decided to lease out the town hall? 

An answer to this question is online already, please see question 3 on this EngageNorfolk webpage.

Q22 b. Were the tax-paying community members consulted? If so, can I see a record of that? 

In June 2020, Norfolk County issued a call for submissions for community organizations or private groups interested in operating or supporting a community hall or arena. Interested parties could submit a proposal, which was presented to Council for consideration and final direction. Council agreed to the Vittoria Town Hall proposal in a public council meeting.

To learn more about the call for submissions, read the June 2020 media release and access FAQs, video recordings, and more.

Q22 c. Was there an annual budget for maintenance? How much was that budget?

There is an annual budget of $14,700 for the operations and maintenance of the Vittoria Old Town Hall.

Q22 d. When did it stop being maintained?

Minor maintenance continues. Major maintenance stopped after the discovery of the extensive structural work required during the detailed design phase of the 2022 capital project. This structural work is required to open the building to the public safely. Minor maintenance and operations of the building as a non-occupiable space continue.

Q22 e. Who decided to stop that maintenance?

Norfolk County decided to hold off with major maintenance pending a Council decision on capital works.

Q22 f. If there was a budget, where did that money go?

Any surplus funds at the end of each year go to year-end surplus or deficit.

Q22 g. Who did the estimate of repairs?

John G. Cooke & Associates Ltd. completed the cost estimates. John G. Cooke & Associates are consulting engineers who specialize in building restorations of heritage-designated buildings. As the report was completed in 2022, staff have included industry standard construction inflation figures to estimate the cost of construction in 2024/2025.

Q22 h. Where can I get a copy of that estimate?

The report is uploaded to this EngageNorfolk page (Important Documents section). The 2022 Building Condition Assessment completed by Englobe Corporation is also on this EngageNorfolk page.

Q23: Is there an agreement which states the County could not sell the Hall or land?)

Staff, in conjunction with legal, have completed an in-depth review of title to both parcels and can confirm that there are currently no legally viable or unexpired restrictive covenants to either property.