Health unit wants to move to Citi Plaza but its current landlord says no
CBC News | Posted: March 6, 2018 10:48 PM | Last Updated: March 7, 2018
Middlesex County, landlord and funder, voted against the MLHU's proposed relocation plan to the downtown mall
Londoners could be visiting Citi Plaza for services provided by the Middlesex London Health Unit, if the organization gets the green light from its board members Wednesday to go ahead with a hotly contested move.
CBC News has learned the proposed site is the second storey on the south side of the downtown mall, including a ground-level entrance off of Clarence Street.
The MLHU has been actively looking for a new home since 2015, with staff and services currently spread between two buildings.
Stalled
But the move is uncertain. A partial funder of the MLHU, and current landlord is saying no to the suggested site.
Middlesex County, which currently collects approximately $1-million in rent from the MLHU's King Street location, blocked the proposed move to Citi Plaza.
At a meeting Tuesday, the county voted 6-4 against supporting the move and called on the province to appoint an assessor to investigate decision-making at the MLHU.
The county has a say in relocation plans as it funds 15 per cent of the municipal contribution to the health unit's budget in a cost-share with the City of London. The contribution amounts to about three pre cent of MLHU's total budget.
3 options
London's Chief Medical Officer of Health said the decision on how to move forward now rests with the board, scheduled to meet Wednesday morning.
"I'm still confused about why they didn't want us to move," said Dr. Chris Mackie, who would not confirm the Citi Plaza location.
"The move is not far though, we'd still be staying in downtown, in basically the same location we're in now. Plus, we'd be able to use better business models for our service."
Mackie suggests the board now has three options to consider:
- Move forward with relocation to Citi Plaza
- Stop the process
- Defer and seek more information
CBC News has reached out to Middlesex County for comment but it has yet to respond.