CFN – For Mark A MacDonald the the Concerned Citizens Coalition the Fat Lady hasn’t sang her last song yet when it comes to the Cornwall General Hospital site which the sale of sits under a cloud of mystery.
The sold sign is not on the building. It was on MLS last week and prospective buyers still are walking through the building.
Prior to the meeting Mr. MacDonald received this note from Jeanette Despatie:
Hello Mark,
I will not be in the office tomorrow and will not be attending this meeting tomorrow evening, however I am happy to respond to your request for an update on the status of the sale of the hospital property at our 2nd Street Site.
The sale of the hospital property is proceeding as planned . At this time the seller’s conditions have been satisfied and waived. The buyer is currently working on satisfying his conditions .
Thank you,
Jeanette Despatie
Chief Executive Officer
Cornwall Community Hospital
The key word in this email is “HIS” The buyer is working on satisfying “HIS” conditions. Now we aren’t privy to any documents but it seems that the buyer of the hospital has gone from a group to a him? Bewildering….
Mr. MacDonald and his group have raised concerns that the only person to date to claim to have purchased the hospital is Dr. Dany Tombler who was on the board of the hospital during discussion of the disposition of Cornwall General prompting some to suggest a conflict of interest if true.
Dr. Tombler has not returned requests to speak with CFN as of press time.
At the Concerned Citizens meeting at the Air Force Wing Monday night it was decided to consult a lawyer regarding a possible injunction to the sale as well as putting forward an official request to delay the sale or kill the sale until there is a referendum ballot question in the next election.
Members of the audience of mostly Seniors recounted the plaques on the walls of the CGH from people the bequeathed money and donated. The talked about the book notating donations as well and many questioned who really owned the building and how some politician in Toronto could decide how to dispose of something that so many here in Cornwall and the area built and paid for?
Mr. MacDonald also raised the question of whether it made any sense to sell a property valuated at $15M for $2M to a private buyer and then end up having the province lease space for services instead of allowing and seeding a non-profit community owned group similar to what happened in Barrie especially with the growing needs of Senior Care in our city and area?
The fight isn’t over, but it’s up to the community to put pressure on local and provincial officials to make it happen.
I think it will all work out.. I trust Dr Tombler.. When his conditions have been satisfied things will proceed..
As a former real estate professional I would be simply wanting to know when the conditions had to be met. From a legal perspective there is a timeline, although extensions maybe granted. Eventually the sale either firms up or it dies.
I hope that something good comes out of the former General Hospital for the senior citizens. Whoever buys it I hope that they have good intensions. Mark MacDonald is a good man and it is too bad that he didn’t get in as mayor and you can see that he really cares for the community.