The Old Post Office in the heart of Lakefield has officially reopened after years of renovations to create an accessible business space in the Village.
In 2022, the building located at 12 Queen Street was closed to the public for renovations after the Peterborough Police Services moved to the River Den building near Isabel Morris Park. The space had previously been occupied by the Kawartha Chamber of Commerce and Tourism as well as the Peterborough Police Services.
However, with the amalgamation of the Kawartha Chamber with the Greater Peterborough Chamber along with the move of the police department, this allowed the township the opportunity to renovate the historic location to be accessible as well as update it for a new use.
The township of Selwyn received a grant of about $750,000 from the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario) for this retrofit project which cost a total of $1.6M and included the installation of an elevator.
According to a press release sent out by the township, The Old Post Office was constructed in 1914 and has served as a post office, apartments, recreational retail space and, most recently, a police station. The building was the village post office for 60 years, from 1916 to 1976 and received municipal heritage designation in 2014 during its 100th anniversary celebration.
The idea behind the renovations was to create a business incubation space for entrepreneurs and small businesses to be able to rent office space for a day, week or month, with the Peterborough & Kawarthas Chamber of Commerce operating as the primary tenant and lease organizer for potential business to rent the space.
However, last October the chamber informed the township that their needs had evolved and a physical presence as the anchor tenant no longer made sense for their current business model though they still intended to rent a smaller space in the building to maintain their presence in the County.
The Chamber felt that they had more of a responsibility to their members to be out talking to businesses then sitting in an office for set hours to monitor the space.
The township then had to reevaluate the use of the building, officially named The Old Post Office.
Breanna Guiotto, acting economic development coordinator, then set about surveying the local business community to see what they wanted the space to be.
She told the Herald that, while there are currently no leases signed for the space, she is expecting the building to be used for businesses/entrepreneurs but is also exploring the option of making use of the space for the township for some of staff needs.
According to a report presented to council last October, township expenses for the Old Post Office are estimated to be between $15,000 and $25,000 annually. The goal in the first year is to attract tenants to the space and at least cover the operating costs which would mean a 50 per cent occupancy rate.
Joel Wiebe, vice president of government relations and communications for the Chamber told the Herald, “We remain very much interested in leasing space in the Old Post Office and are waiting for the Township to reach out to us when they are ready to negotiate an office lease space for us.”
He went on to say, “My understanding is the township is waiting to secure a ground floor tenant that will oversee the public bathrooms before they lease out other space within the building. There is a possibility that the lower floor tenant could also require additional space upstairs. We are committed to maintaining our presence in Selwyn, ideally in the Old Post Office. We look forward to seeing this historic building take on new life as a fully accessible and updated space.”
Angela Chittick, manager of community & corporate services /clerk for the Township said that staff have been checking in with the Chamber periodically to keep them updated on the progress of the renovations. Now that the building is ready for tenants, they will be reaching out to the Chamber with the hope that they will be interested in using some space in the building.
The grand re-opening of the space was held on Saturday morning with an official ribbon cutting ceremony and tours of the new space.
Those interested in renting space are encouraged to contact Guiotto at 705.292.9507 ext. 239.
