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Home / Projects & Initiatives / Future replacement of Town Hall building

Future replacement of Town Hall building

A longstanding item in the Town’s Strategic Plan has been to plan for the replacement of Town Hall.

Town Hall was constructed in 1964. As the building ages and standards evolve, the building has become increasingly expensive to maintain and is no longer meeting functional needs.

Building Condition Assessment

In 2025, the Town commissioned an independent building condition assessment to determine whether Town Hall could continue functioning for another 40 years. The assessment found that doing so would require extensive renovations, including:

  • Replacing major mechanical and electrical systems
  • Installing new building footings
  • Adding an elevator to meet accessibility requirements
  • Undertaking seismic upgrades to meet current Building Code standards
  • Upgrading the building exterior

Given the scale of work required, the consultant concluded that renovating Town Hall would cost roughly the same as building new, without the benefits of a modern layout, improved accessibility, or better use of the site.

Current Design Limitations

Much of Town Hall is inaccessible to people with mobility limitations, and Council Chambers are often too small to accommodate the number of people who come to participate in and observe Council meetings.

A future Town Hall would be fully accessible and better serve the community with:

  • A welcoming reception area with public washrooms, along with flexible spaces for members of the community to connect with staff.
  • Appropriately sized Council Chambers designed to encourage community participation with ample room for well-attended meetings and public hearings.
  • Adaptable workspaces to accommodate changes in staffing and evolving needs.

As a result of the building condition assessment and overall design limitations of the current building, we are now focused on exploring options to replace Town Hall rather than pursue major renovations.

 

Help shape a future Town Hall

Community input is essential at this stage of the project. Before future options are developed for public consideration, Council and staff are hoping to better understand community values, priorities and preferences.

Thank you for taking the time to learn more and share your thoughts by April 30th.

Take the online survey

An online survey is now open

Survey closes: April 30, 2026

Feedback can also be shared in writing by emailing admin@sidney.ca or dropping off a letter by mail or in person at Town Hall (2440 Sidney Ave).

Attend an open house

The Town will host two open houses where residents can learn more about the project, ask questions, and share input.

Open Houses

  • Monday, March 30, 2026
    1:00 pm – 3:00 pm (Presentation at 1:15 pm)
    Mary Winspear Centre
    2243 Beacon Avenue
  • Thursday, April 9, 2026
    7:00 pm – 9:00 pm (Presentation at 7:15 pm)
    Mary Winspear Centre
    2243 Beacon Avenue

 

Key Considerations: What decisions are being explored?

At this stage of the project, Council and staff will be seeking public input on the following key considerations. No decisions have been made at this time.

Community input will help shape the options that are brought forward for further consideration.

Map Image
Whether to build a new Town Hall on the current site or relocate Town Hall to another location in downtown Sidney.
Town Hall Graphic Taller Multi Use
Whether to permit a building height above four storeys to help reduce project costs.
Lease image'
Whether the new Town Hall should be municipally owned and financed through long-term borrowing. Another approach would be to lease space from a private partner to reduce maintenance responsibilities and borrowing costs.
Town Hall Graphic with Community Space
Whether to add community space in a new Town Hall project, recognizing that this could increase project costs.
Residential image
Whether to include affordable housing in a new Town Hall project, recognizing that this could increase project costs.
Graphic. Town Hall Residential
Whether to pursue a multi-use partnership to lower project costs and potentially add housing to the Town Hall site.
Estimated timeline for finalizing design of future Town Hall

Questions and Answers

Rebuilding Town Hall on its current site would preserve the historical significance of this location and may seem like the obvious choice, but it would also be one of the most expensive and disruptive options.

Redevelopment would require relocating Town Hall services and Council Chambers to a temporary location for two to three years, meaning staff and services would need to be moved twice. This would increase costs and create significant logistical challenges.

Rebuilding on the existing site could also limit opportunities to sell or lease land to help offset construction costs.

By contrast, a new downtown site could support revitalization in another area of the downtown core, and lead to the creation a new civic plaza, while keeping the Cenotaph in its current location. It could also offer greater flexibility for partnerships or cost-saving opportunities.

Public input is an important part of this decision, and community feedback will help guide the path forward.

There are no plans to move the Cenotaph, which has heritage value and serves the community well in its current location.

Even under ideal conditions, developing a final design and securing financial approval would take approximately two years, followed by another two years of construction. This means a new Town Hall would most likely not be ready for use until 2030 or later. Large projects like this take time, and we are committed to involving the community, carefully managing costs, and delivering a result that meets long-term needs.

Updating or replacing the Town’s aging civic sites has long been a priority in Sidney’s Strategic Plan. This work extends beyond Town Hall to include the Public Works Yard.

The Public Works Yard currently consists of a mix of structures, including buildings from the 1970s, a relocated and re-purposed home, a modular unit, and some additions from more recent decades. These facilities are deteriorating and do not function well together.

Staff are looking into options to modernize the Public Works Yard and are pursuing grant funding to support this assessment work.

Project updates are expected in 2027.

 

For more information, contact:

Administration Department

Town of Sidney

Phone: 250-656-1139

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