The Startek building along Highway 15 in the east end of Kingston, Ont., was once seen as a symbol of the municipality’s budding call centre industry.
That is no longer the case. The large multi-storey building has sat empty since 2020.
Startek employees were shifted to work from home with the onset of the pandemic and they have never returned.
The building’s owner, Frank Casametta, says an empty building with no new tenants in sight doesn’t make good business sense.
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“I’ve been paying for years, over a million-something dollars, and it’s come to a time, if I don’t get this building rented by the end of October, we’re tearing it down,” said Casametta.
If it comes down to demolishing the building, one option Casametta is considering is residential buildings.
Mayor Bryan Paterson says Kingston, like most of the province, needs more housing.
“We’re certainly open to the conversation, we want to make sure that all land in the city is utilized as best we can,” said Paterson.
“At our council meeting just this past week one of the housing measures that we approved was to allow the conversion of certain non-residential buildings into housing”
If the building is torn down, Casametta says he will be coming to the city with plans for the property early next year.
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