St. Catharines Mayor Mat Siscoe contradicts past false statements, forced to finally order clean-up of polluted GM site

After years of relentless advocacy and sustained public pressure by residents of St. Catharines, the City has issued a sweeping Property Standards Order to the owners of the former General Motors site at 282-285 Ontario Street, contradicting false claims by Mayor Mat Siscoe who has repeatedly told frustrated stakeholders that council lacks the authority to force a clean up, which was blatantly misleading, as he has now been forced to admit.

Two similar orders were issued last week, one to clean up the decaying, crumbling structures on the east side of the street and one for the west side. Dated May 22, they acknowledge extensive dangerous and deteriorating conditions throughout the partially demolished industrial property, including structural instability, collapsed ceilings, corroded steel supports, unsafe stairways, unsecured openings, exposed hazards, debris and widespread deterioration.

The City’s decision to bring the former GM property into compliance with standards comes after years of advocacy by residents, community groups and neighbouring property owners who have warned that the abandoned site poses a serious risk to public safety. Concerns regarding trespassing, structural collapse, unsecured access points, environmental hazards, dangerous industrial spaces and the absence of meaningful site security have repeatedly been raised with City officials.

Only weeks ago, concerns surrounding the condition of the catwalk structure spanning Ontario Street, one of the city’s major thoroughfares, were brought into public focus. City officials claimed the structure and surrounding areas were considered safe based on information contained in a report provided by the landowner. The reassurance suggested adjoining structures also posed no risk. Those same buildings are now described in the City’s own Property Standards Orders as exhibiting serious deterioration, structural instability, corrosion, collapse hazards and unsafe conditions.

The obvious contradictions between earlier claims made by City officials and the Mayor, compared to the new findings, when nothing has materially changed, has left residents questioning why Sicoe exposed people to danger for years.

In a public statement released Monday, May 25, he wrote: “Last week the City received a number of complaints related to the property located at 285 Ontario Street. Upon receiving those complaints, as a matter of course, the City conducted an inspection of the property.”

It is not clear what specific complaints were received in the days leading up to the enforcement action; a series of letters was submitted to the City by members of the Girl Guides of Canada last Thursday. They were included in a publicly accessible council correspondence linked to an agenda.

A recently posted YouTube video showed a group of teens wandering around inside the abandoned GM factory, which poses numerous dangers including crumbling brick, broken piping and open pits.

(Joel Wittnebel/The Pointer files)

In a media release Erin Panda, a volunteer Guider and associate professor of Child and Youth Studies at Brock University, explains that among her group of girls, “The question that kept circulating is why this action (cleaning the site) has not yet been taken and when will it occur.” 

In her accompanying letter, Panda noted students were inspired in part by a billboard installed near the property that depicts a young girl and her puppy standing on the former GM lands against the backdrop of the deteriorating industrial ruins. The child is shown wearing a flimsy mask as her only form of protection.

The billboard was commissioned by The Coalition for A Better St Catharines, a local advocacy group that has been pushing for the clean up of the former GM site for nearly a decade.

Members of the Coalition for a Better St. Catharines stand in front of the billboard calling attention to the GM site.  

(Submitted)

In recent months, the Coalition intensified its campaign, repeatedly calling on City officials to enforce Property Standards bylaws by compelling the property owner to address ongoing safety concerns, or face legal action.

Contacted by The Pointer for comment, Coalition member Gwen Kennedy said the group views the City’s recent enforcement action as an important step, but remains cautious after years of delays and deteriorating conditions.

“While we welcome this meaningful action to protect public safety, after years of delay, worsening conditions, and stalled redevelopment, we remain cautious,” Kennedy said.

“Issuing orders is only the first step. The real test will be whether the City is prepared to fully enforce them if the property owner fails to comply. Until the site is finally cleaned up and made safe, we will continue to push for action.”

She also pointed to a series of recent town hall meetings where Siscoe and local ward councillors claimed officials, including themselves, had been reluctant to proactively enforce bylaws on the property because of concerns over potential liability exposure.

According to Kennedy, residents were told by Siscoe that  municipal intervention at the site could expose the City to liabilities potentially reaching $100 million.

The Coalition, she said, has long rejected that claim, describing it as “fear tactics” used to justify years of inaction. She noted that Coalition members consistently argued the greater legal and moral risk came not from enforcing safety standards at a visibly dangerous property, but from allowing hazardous conditions to persist despite repeated public warnings.

“We know neighbourhood children explore that site,” Kennedy said. “If any of them are seriously injured, or worse, it seems logical to conclude the City will have some responsibility for allowing those dangers to remain unaddressed.”

Among the violations identified by the City inspector:

• “Interior ceiling systems are collapsed, hanging, or otherwise damaged, creating a falling debris hazard;
• Exterior structural supports and steel members exhibit advanced corrosion and visible deterioration;
• Sections of the upper masonry parapet and wall assemblies appear partially collapsed;
• Stair assemblies exhibit extensive rusting, deterioration, and unsafe walking surfaces;
• Multiple large openings in the exterior walls and building envelope remain unsecured and exposed to unauthorized entry;
• Debris, rubble, loose bricks, broken glass, and construction waste are scattered throughout the property.”

Many of the issues identified by City inspectors have existed on the GM sites for years.

(Submitted)

During a recent town hall meeting this spring, Grant Higginson was one of many residents who attended and delegated, challenging Mayor Sicoe’s repeated claims that legal risks, a lack of authority and responsibilities that belonged to the property owner prevented council from acting.

“I’m tired of watching residents do the work council was elected to do,” he told The Pointer. “Almost everything the public knows about that property has come from citizens, FOI filings, and journalism done at real personal cost. Delegating is the least I can do when others have already done so much more.”

Like other residents who attended, Higginson said he left the meeting frustrated.

“I was not at all satisfied with what I heard. The answers were rehearsed enough that you could feel they’d been delivered many times before. When I pressed for the factual basis (for not being able to act), the mayor had no response.”

He also took issue with what he described as repeated references to unnamed legal and development advice being used to justify continued inaction.

“Council keeps invoking unnamed lawyers and developers as the reason nothing can move forward, but the public never sees the advice, never hears the names, and never sees a single document backing any of it,” Higginson said. “Residents are being asked to accept inaction on faith.”

A recent investigation by The Pointer revealed a murky corporate structure behind the GM site’s ownership. 

The clean-up order finally issued last week repeatedly states the owner must either repair the dangerous structures or demolish them entirely. If compliance is not achieved, the City may undertake repairs or demolition itself, recover costs from the owner, register the order on title, impose additional penalties and pursue further enforcement and legal action,  measures residents and community advocates have been urging the City to pursue for years. 

The landowners, listed as 2390541 Ontario Inc, are given until June 12 to remedy the site and bring the property in line with applicable property standards, or appeal the order. If the owners fail to meet either requirement, the City has a range of enforcement options available, including issuing fines and, where necessary, arranging for the required work to be completed and billing the costs back to the landowner.

In his public statement Siscoe pointed to efforts that he has consistently thwarted: “For over a decade a great deal of time, energy and money has been invested in this site by everyone involved.”

Kennedy credits her fellow residents for doing the heavy lifting while she pointed a finger at politicians like Siscoe. “We are going to celebrate this first victory and acknowledge this positive step taken by the city, but we have many questions. What changed? Why was this action not taken earlier? Are we expected to believe the messaging that implies these dangerous conditions were only recently discovered?”

She said pressure will be kept up till the end. “Regardless, we will continue our work to ensure that the site is made safe once and for all.”

Mayor Siscoe did not respond to a request for comment.

Email: [email protected]

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