The Newfoundland and Labrador government said Monday it will demolish the Martin Gallant Building in Stephenville Crossing, a former college campus that was being converted into a courthouse and government services centre, after $5.6 million was spent on the project.
The Department of Transportation and Infrastructure announced Oct. 5 that further environmental and structural assessments found contaminated soil, lead paint and “significant structural deficiencies” in the building on Seal Cove Road, VOCM reported. The province said the work needed to make it safe would be far more complex and costly than expected.
Transportation Minister Barry Petten said the government had “serious concerns” about the project’s feasibility and cost, and that the problems should have been identified earlier. He said continuing “would not be responsible” because the project no longer represented a sound investment of public funds, CBC News reported.
Premier Tony Wakeham called the project “a fiasco” at an event in Corner Brook on Tuesday. He said the province must now determine whether the site can serve another purpose, and that the minister will consult communities about future development.
The government said the previous Liberal administration advanced the project “without the level of due diligence and site analysis” normally expected for an undertaking of this scale, VOCM reported.
The building was once a campus of the College of the North Atlantic. The Liberal government began redeveloping it after concerns about accessibility at the provincial government building in nearby Stephenville.
The original redevelopment estimate was $8 million. A $28.6-million contract was awarded in May 2025, and the most recent projection had grown to $40 million, CBC reported. The contractor flagged “significant challenges” because it had only a partial design when it bid on the work.
The province paused the project in June after spending $5.6 million.
Stephenville Crossing Mayor Lisa Lucas said residents are fearful about the community’s future after being excited about the earlier plan. She said she wants the building demolished quickly because of safety concerns, and described the site as a “prime piece of real estate.”
Lucas also criticized what she called a lack of transparency and communication from the government. She said she expects the Progressive Conservative government to announce a new courthouse in Stephenville within six or seven months.
The government said it is assessing other available spaces in the region for government services. It has not released a demolition timeline or a cost for tearing down the building.
The Liberals, who launched the project, were not quoted in the reports reviewed for this story.
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Via VOCM and CBC News. Developing: details are drawn from published reports and have not been independently confirmed.
