
PRESCOTT – The town plans to sell the building known locally as the Forwarders’ Museum.
Town council declared the property surplus during a special council meeting Monday night. It was during a closed session where council discussed proposed purchase or sale of land.
In a public notice Thursday, the corporation says it’s “received an unsolicited offer” to buy the rubble stone building covered in stucco at 201 Water Street.
If the building, which is a heritage property under the Ontario Heritage Act, changes hands, the heritage designation will remain on the property.
Council received a structural report last year for the building which suggested there were some pricey repairs needed – in the order of $250,000 to $300,000 – at the low end of the scale.
The Forwarders’ Museum, built in the late 1820s by Prescott’s first forwarder William Gilkison, was a post office and customs house. It’s now the museum and tourism information center.
The Town of Prescott is accepting public comment on the proposed sale until Aug. 24.