Central Frontenac Recovers 83% Of Former Simonett Building Cost
In May of 2025, Central Frontenac CounIn May of 2025, Central Frontenac Council voted to purchase the Simonett Building, the former home of W.A. Robinson and Associates, from Kelly Robinson for $1.6 million.
At the time, Chief Administrative Officer Cathy MacMunn said that the purchase would be financed through the sale of selected municipal properties that were surplus to the Township’s needs, rather than directly through taxation dollars. After completing minor renovations, the township moved its offices to the new location in early July of 2025.
In a report to Council this week, prepared by MacMunn and Chief Financial Officer Michael McGovern, it was revealed that property sales over the intervening 14 months have brought in $1.33 million, 84% of the $1.6 million target.
The report also indicated there is a pending sale of a further property on 5th Depot Road, which brings the township closer to paying off the purchase.
By far the largest sale on the list of properties that have been sold, the $840,000 sale price of the vacated township office building on Elizabeth Street in Sharbot Lake. The building was purchased by Community Living North Frontenac, who have in turn leased back part of the building to the township, to house the Sharbot Branch of the Kingston Frontenac Public Library.
Of the other properties that are included in the list of those sold, the two most lucrative were a property on Steiger Road (near Big Gull Lake) for $163,000 and a lot on Heron Lane (Parham) for $133,000. The former library building in Mountain Grove, which sold for $84,000, is also on the list, as are a number of road closings, which yielded $61,000 to the township.
To facilitate the sales, the township has been using the services of “qualified real estate agents where appropriate,” the report says, a practice that the township will continue to employ for the next list of properties.
“This approach has provided an efficient and effective method of bringing properties to market while reducing the administrative requirements associated with property sales for township staff,” said the report.
The report is silent on the impact of leasing costs for the Sharbot Lake branch of the library, which are new and ongoing costs to the township, for space that was previously folded into the heating and maintenance costs of the office building.
