Public board sells CDCI West

COBOURG - The sale of the Cobourg District Collegiate Institute West site by the Kawartha Pine Ridge District School Board to a developer closed Tuesday.

It was sold to Xu Jiong Weng for $1,660,000, according to a release from the Peterborough-based public school board.

The school was vacated after Cobourg ’s two public high schools were merged into one in 2015 by the board due to declining enrolment.

After no other public agencies expressed an interest in wanting to use the site, the board put the property up for sale to the public using a sealed bid process with assistance from a local realtor and the board’s lawyer, according to the release.

Cobourg Mayor Gil Brocanier expressed disappointment with the sale last month, saying there was a higher bid at $1.81-million with a condition.

But the board says Weng’s offer was the highest it received and there were no conditions attached to the sale, according to the release.

“This has been an extensive process where, in accordance with provincial regulation, we provided first opportunity for this property to public agencies (other school boards, municipalities) at fair market value,” board chairwoman Cathy Abraham stated. “After moving through that process without an offer at fair market value, the next step is to make the property available to the public at-large.

“We appreciate that the community has a significant interest in the disposal of this property. We take seriously our obligations as stewards of these public resources, and are confident we have secured full market value in return for this asset. These funds will now be dedicated to support future capital investments in our schools, for our students.”