Oxford celebrates infrastructure funding
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Posted By HUGO RODRIGUES, SENTINEL-REVIEW
Updated 1 month ago
With most of the projects complete save this last handful, politicians took the opportunity to remind us of the $20.5 million received by Oxford County municipalities in June 2009 for infrastructure projects.
MPP Dave MacKenzie -- and some photos of the different project sites --joined Oxford Warden Paul Holbrough during a Tuesday morning announcement adjacent to the Old Registry Office in Woodstock's Court House Square. Demolition and construction at the Old Registry Office began this past week, providing the backdrop for the re-announcement of the funding that was confirmed in a June 2009 press release.
"This former registry office will undergo a renovation that will enhance the court facilities," MacKenzie said. "It's part of that big economic action plan brought in while the world was in the economic downturn.
"There are 6,400 projects like this across the country."
MacKenzie later noted the announcement of the funding wasn't "new news" but was timely given the last of the projects are currently getting underway. In terms of the $7.6 million in Oxford County projects, the registry renovation is one of seven projects.
The full list for Oxford County also includes the reconstruction of portions of Oxford roads 9, 13, 6 and 55, in addition to the renovation of the so-called turnkey building and improvements to a water operators' shop in Ingersoll.
Holbrough thanked MacKenzie and the federal government for steering a chunk of the stimulus grants towards the county -- Oxford's area municipalities also benefited from $15.3 in federal-provincial funding for 13 other projects.
"It will be a legacy felt for many generations," Holbrough said. "We're very happy that we continue to have a positive relationship with the federal and provincial governments."
When it comes to the registry building itself, the original part of the building built in 1876 will be renovated and become the county-managed provincial offences courtroom, as well as justices' chambers. A 1950s addition -- built using bricks from the former exercise yard at the old Oxford County Gaol that is today the headquarters for the department of public health and emergency services -- is what has been torn down. It will be rebuilt and house the administrative offices for the provincial offences court. The building had most recently been used as home for the Oxford Historical and Oxford Genealogical societies, as well as Crown attorneys' offices.
"Initially, we looked at whether we could repurpose, but early on with the space requirements that were needed and the way the court will function, it wasn't possible to do it given the constraints of the existing space," Oxford operations manager Mike Campbell said.
The provincial offences court will move from the basement of the adjacent Oxford County Court House to the Old Registry Building once the work is complete next spring. This will allow the Ontario courts to have full and exclusive use of the entire courthouse building.
Campbell said work is expected to begin shortly on the renovations to the turnkey building, which had been the jail governor's residence.
It will be renovated, with storage and office space on the first floor and a multiuse space on the second floor. It too receives a small expansion where storage of some other historical material as well as an elevator will be added to the building. This building will become home to the Oxford archives, as well as the two societies -- all three of which are currently working out of a county owned building on Vine Street in Beachville.
hrodrigues@bowesnet.com
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