Pitched as new gateway to downtown London in 2012, five vacant properties listed for tax sale

The City of London is putting up several parcels of land for sale on South Street. CTV’s Daryl Newcombe explains why.

There’s renewed hope in the SoHo neighbourhood that the upcoming tax sale of five properties could reignite interest in developing a long-vacant site overlooking the Thames River.

In January 2012, then-mayor Joe Fontana announced at his State of the City Address that London-based Fincore Solutions intended to build a $300-million twin-tower residential and wellness centre at the corner of Wellington Street and South Street.

At the time, council even rezoned several properties on the site that were not yet owned by Fincore.

However, the project never broke ground and the vacant lot has become a magnet for illegal dumping, encampments, and other neighbourhood concerns.

“This property, with all the encampments and everything that’s been going on (in) our part of the neighborhood, we just want it dealt with,” neighbour Taija Pearson says. “Put some residential (development) here to make it look a little bit more beautiful than the ugliness of what it is now.”

On Thursday, the City of London listed five properties within the site for tax sale:

• 283 South St.
• 289 South St.
• 299 South St.
• 71 Waterloo St.
• 72 Wellington St.

The intent of the sale is to recoup unpaid property taxes, but Coun. David Ferreira also hopes it will spark renewed interest in developing the site.

“There have been opportunities here before that didn’t materialize. There were promises made that didn’t materialize,” Ferreira tells CTV News.

He points to the site’s close proximity to the Thames River, the Bus Rapid Transit route, the Vision SoHo development on the former hospital lands, and recent investments in the Thames Valley Parkway (TVP).

The five properties are being sold individually, and as a group do not form a contiguous site for development.

“The city does not own the properties and has no authority to consolidate the properties,” city hall writes in a statement. “The purpose of the tax sale is to recover property tax arrears. The city has followed the timelines and processes as prescribed by legislation pertaining to tax sales. This process does not include the city taking ownership of the property.”

Unlocking the full potential of the site would still require the acquisition of some other properties that were previously rezoned for the wellness centre.

“This is an underutilized piece of land that is in a great spot in the city. So, I think it’s time that we potentially have a new future here,” Ferreira adds.

Sealed tenders bidding to purchase the properties will be accepted at city hall until 3 p.m. on Thursday, June 18, 2026.