Peterborough This Week

PETERBOROUGH — The former YMCA building, an architectural landmark in downtown Peterborough since 1895, has been listed for sale by its current owner, Dr. Jenny Ingram, for $1,475,000.

Dr. Ingram paid $1 for the building in 2007 but is unlikely to make much money off its sale, according to Peterborough planning director Malcom Hunt.

He says the $1,475,000 she’s seeking for the property comes pretty close, from what he understands, to covering what she has spent in carrying costs over the last seven years.

“It’s obvious she (Dr. Ingram) tried her best to move her plan forward…she engaged design consultants, she tried to secure zoning and she invested a lot of money carrying costs,” notes Mr. Hunt.

The property is billed in the real-estate listing as a “mixed use redevelopment opportunity” by broker DTZ Eastern Ontario Limited based in Kingston.

Dr. Ingram, a well-respected local geriatrician and president of the Kawartha Regional Memory Clinic, bought the building from the YMCA for $1 in 2007, planning to convert the more than 107,600-square-foot space into a community centre for seniors with commercial and residential components.

Those plans, for whatever reason, have yet to come fruition and the building is currently vacant, according to the real estate listing.

Calls to Dr. Ingram for comment on the sale have not been returned.

“I can understand why she doesn’t want to talk about (the sale). It’s really no one’s business,” Mr. Hunt says.

“She put her heart and soul into trying to make it work. She stepped way beyond her comfort zone and put her money where her mouth is. At the end of the day, she had to call it as she sees it.”

Mr. Hunt was directly involved in talks between the City and potential buyers of the property in 2006 and says two purchase bids were entertained as part of a public proposal call process.

One involved a substantial of money being paid for the building but would have seen the City take on a sizable financial risk via a lease-back proposal.

The other, from Dr. Ingram, had at is centre “a very compelling vision” for the property, says Mr. Hunt.

Because there was no need for the City to be involved due to there being no financial implications, it was decided that Ms Ingram and the YMCA should work out a deal between them. They did and the $1 purchase price was agreed upon.