At the Regular Meeting of Council on Tuesday, February 23, 2021, Council agreed not to renew a lease agreement with the owner of 12150 Tecumseh Road for the use of parking spaces on the property. The decision was based on a significantly increased cost to rent the spaces, as part of the owner’s proposed new terms for renewal of the agreement.

“Unfortunately the Town was not able to negotiate a contract that was economically feasible and Council decided it was prudent to discontinue the lease,” said Gary McNamara, Mayor of Tecumseh. “The Town owns two other parking areas in the immediate area with a combined total of 66 parking spaces. These will continue to be maintained and available to patrons and, in future, additional on-street parking is planned on Tecumseh Road.”

The Town first entered into a lease agreement in 1999 for exclusive use of 29 parking spaces at 12150 Tecumseh Road and shared in the cost to improve the area with a hard surface and proper drainage.  Under the agreement the Town assumed responsibility for normal maintenance of the parking area including snow removal, cleaning and striping.  An annual fee was also paid to the owner equal to the tax levy against the parking area. The property was sold to the current owner in 2009 and the agreement was extended for two five-year terms.

There are two other lots in close proximity where public parking is available. Parking Lot 1 (20 parking spots) is located at 12130 Tecumseh Road, next to the Tecumseh BIA Office, and Parking Lot 3 (46 parking spots)is located in front of the Royal Canadian Legion at 12326 Lesperance Road.

The Town is currently finalizing the plans on the Tecumseh Road Main Street Streetscape project, which would implement on-street parking along Tecumseh Road from Southfield to VIA Rail.  In the interim, Town staff will continue to monitor the utilization of the municipal parking lots, and if necessary, bring forward a recommendation to Council to implement on-street parking in advance of the Streetscape project.

A map showing all available public parking in the Tecumseh/Lesperance area is available.

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Media Contact: Laura Moy, Director Corporate Services and Clerk, 519-735-2184 Ext. 116