St. Catharines orders owners of former GM plant site to repair or demolish buildings

The owners of the former General Motors auto parts plants on Ontario Street in St. Catharines have been ordered by the city to repair, replace or demolish the buildings, a directive the city says is needed to ensure public safety.

Mayor Mat Siscoe said the orders cover two addresses on Ontario Street and follow a series of complaints about one of the properties.

For over a decade a great deal of time, energy and money has been invested in this site by everyone involved.

While the orders issued today will not resolve the issues that have prevented redevelopment to date, I hope they will serve as the starting point for a constructive path forward.

Siscoe made the comments in an emailed statement.

A long-stalled site

GM ended production at the plants in 2010 and sold the property to BayShore Groups in 2014 for $12.5 million. Four years later, the company announced a $250 million redevelopment that was to include a retirement residence, trails along Twelve Mile Creek and a trade school.

Construction never moved ahead. In early 2020, the city said it had heard serious concerns from residents about property standards and possible environmental hazards.

The city also took legal action against the property owner, listed in court documents as 2390541 Ontario Inc., over Building Code Act and waste bylaw charges. The building code charges stemmed from the demolition of a smokestack in February 2021 without a permit, while the bylaw charges involved a failure to test, remove and dispose of refuse and debris.

The numbered corporation pleaded guilty in provincial court in January 2022 to 12 charges and was fined $60,000.

What the new orders require

Under the city's orders, the owners must repair, replace or board all openings to prevent unauthorized entry, and remove or repair damaged and unstable ceiling materials. The city says the owner can instead apply to demolish the buildings.

Paul Chudoba, the city's bylaw enforcement manager, said the numbered corporation was named in the order because it is who the city recognizes as the property owner. He outlined the consequences of ignoring the directive.

There are multiple methods of escalating, which can be administrative monetary penalties, prosecution under the Provincial Offences Act, and the city would do the work to comply the order at the expense of the property owner.

Chudoba spoke to Global News, which first reported the story.

Province watching the site

St. Catharines NDP MPP Jennie Stevens tabled a motion at Queen's Park on Wednesday calling on the province to ensure the site is cleaned up under two sections of the Environmental Protection Act.

"This section will give the minister powers to hold current and former property owners for the cost of remediation and cleanup of that site," Stevens told Global News. She said contaminated materials, including PCBs and asbestos, have been found on the property, and argued cleanup should be the responsibility of either the province or the "massive corporation that once existed," referring to GM.

Environment, Conservation and Parks Minister Todd McCarthy confirmed during question period Wednesday that untreated storm water had been collected on the site, and said his ministry's enforcement and investigation branch may launch an investigation. "We will take appropriate action if we see non-compliance that is identified," McCarthy said.

Stevens said she will be working with McCarthy on the file, and added she believes BayShore Groups has walked away from the community project and the property.

Global News said it reached out to BayShore Groups for comment but did not receive a response before publication.