Small community’s big debt over $6M submarine set to be paid off
Saddled with more than $6 million in debt after backing a loan to bring a Cold War submarine to its shores, a London-area community is poised to pay off the outstanding amount 15 years early.
Bayham, a municipality with 7,000 residents on the eastern edge of Elgin County, is in line to settle the approximately $4 million remaining on its submarine debt in March 2025, when the 10-year term on its 25-year loan ends.
“It’s the best time, if we’re going to try and get out of it, to do it,” Mayor Ed Ketchabaw said.
“We’ve explored it in the past and to break the mortgage, the interest penalties would by far outweigh the benefit. That’s why in March 2025 we’re looking to retire this debt.”
The municipality has about $2.5 million in a dedicated fund, will pull another $1.1 million from its capital budget this year and is hoping to make up the remainder through the sale of four long-abandoned residential properties seized by the municipality, Ketchabaw said.
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“We got those lots vested to the municipality in the summer. We’re in the process of having them declared surplus and we’ll sell them as residential lots,” Ketchabaw said about the four fully serviced parcels on the east side of a park in Vienna.
Some public meetings and a small rezoning must happen first before the properties can hit the market, he said.
I think Doug Ford could help out here. He panders for everything else.
Why not this?
It’s a perfect photo op!