The fate of the John Sleeth Community and Cultural Centre remains unknown.

In 2019, a wind storm blew away part of the roof and caused other damage to the structure of the John Sleeth Community and Cultural Centre. The building also suffers from an ongoing moisture issue.

Michel Lafrance, mayor of Sutton, wrote a letter to the citizens to address this situation pre-pandemic. There are currently five businesses directly affected by this situation. All five businesses will be forced to relocate.

“The five businesses are: the Sutton Volunteer Centre (CAB), the Arts Sutton Gallery, the Bibliothèque Sutton Library, the Jardin d’enfants and the Sutton Youth centre,” listed Lafrance.

Currently, only the CAB has found a new location. The town is working to help relocate the other residents of the building.

It is a historic building, so there are many rules about demolishing it or renovating it. But Lafrance noted that the current structure is completely different to the original historic architecture.

“It has a sentimental value for some citizens because their parents went to school there,” added Lafrance.

Over the past 10 years, even before the wind storm, numerous studies have been conducted by the town. These studies included subjects such as: the centre's role on the community, structural condition and heritage value. The current council in office has made several changes to the building to bring it up to health and safety codes.

No decisions have been made regarding the future of the John Sleeth Community and Cultural Centre. But the mayor mentioned for citizens to remain on the lookout for further communications.

Here is Mayor Michel Lafrance: