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Report to come back to council next month on health organization’s proposal
Published Mar 18, 2026 • Last updated 2 days ago • 4 minute read
A rendering of the new South Bruce Peninsula town hall in Wiarton. Photo by G.M. Diemert Architect Inc.Article content
South Bruce Peninsula council has received a proposal from the South Bruce Peninsula Family Health Organization to move into vacant space next to its new town hall.
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Representatives from the family health organization appeared before council on Tuesday where they asked the municipality to consider a proposal that would see family doctors and other health-care professionals relocate into an expanded medical clinic in 8,000 square feet of the former grocery store next to Bluewater Park currently being renovated for the new town hall.
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Council, which was generally supportive of the idea, agreed to get a report back from staff, including the financial implications and details on other potential tenant needs for the space.
Mayor Jay Kirkland said Tuesday that the reaction from council was mostly positive to the plan, but the town has to see what they can do from their side as far as the costs involved.
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“I am excited about it. It is something that any municipality would like to see in a building – a long term tenant doctors association with all kinds of agencies around that supporting it,” said Kirkland. “I think it is the best for any small community when we talk about shared facilities and those types of things. It is what we want to see.”
Council received a deputation from local family doctor and health organization lead physician Megan Grigg, Sauble and Wiarton physician recruitment chair Cory Dobbin and physician recruitment treasurer and health organization administrator Sandra Clarke on Tuesday. They laid out their proposal to expand and relocate into the new 26,800-square-foot town hall building. Approximately 12,000-sq.-ft. of vacant space is available for other uses.
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The town’s family doctors are now located in suites at the Wiarton hospital operated by Brightshores Health System. But those offices, built in 1994, are an old model of individual offices that lack the space needed to grow. Dobbin said they approached Brightshores about renovating the doctors’ space, but the hospital corporation wasn’t able to move forward with the plan.
“There are physical walls between all of the doctors in the current setup and we are trying to remove those walls so it really can be a team-based care, collaborative approach to health care,” Dobbin said. “That is not only going to benefit our community as a whole, but also our doctors and any new doctors that are coming up here and looking.”
The proposal presented by the group on Tuesday included a request that the town carry a 25-year mortgage for the estimated $2-million cost to build the new clinic. With annual costs expected to total about $200,000, including mortgage payments and operating expenses, much of that would be covered by lease agreements with the doctors, Interprofessional Primary Care Team funding from the province, and lease agreements from other potential complimentary partners like a sports medicine clinic, hearing clinic or foot care clinic.
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They are proposing that any gap in funding come from municipalities, including South Bruce Peninsula and Georgian Bluffs, as well as from donations and fundraising. The physicians estimate 25 to 30 per cent of their patients are residents of Georgian Bluffs.
Deputy-mayor Caleb Hull said he would like to see a request made to Georgian Bluffs for a long-term commitment to the initiative.
The family health organization currently includes a roster of 6.5 full-time equivalent medical doctors, with a roster of about 6,000 patients. There are also an estimated 2,500 people in South Bruce Peninsula and Georgian Bluffs without a family physician.
“We think everybody should have a family health team, a family doctor and a family nurse practitioner,” Grigg said.
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Because the primary care doctors are so busy, they are unable to offer their patients same-day access for ailments such as ear infections, Grigg said, which leads to more people using emergency rooms. There is also a shortage of other providers, including nurse practitioners, dietitians and social workers.
Grigg said they see an opportunity now to address some of the shortcomings in the system after the provincial government announced funding to create and expand approximately 75 new primary care teams to connect 500,000 more people to primary care. She said the Grey Bruce Ontario Health Team has submitted an application on their behalf, with a announcement expected soon.
Grigg said they are collaborating with the Peninsula Family Health Team in Lion’s Head on the proposal to bring non-doctor health professionals to Wiarton to improve patient access and physician recruitment.
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They envision a family doctor for every resident, same-day access for ailments like ear infections, fever or sprains, fewer emergency room visits and access to other important health services. Grigg said the team would include administrative help, which would lead to a better work-life balance for the doctors and help with recruitment of more doctors and nurse practitioners in the future.
“If the team is set up then it would be an attractive place for new doctors to come,” said Grigg. “The physical space we have right now is getting full, so there is a need for more doctors, nurse practitioners and primary care providers, but the space isn’t necessarily there.”
South Bruce Peninsula director of financial services and treasurer Tracey Neifer said carrying an additional $2-million mortgage would result in a tax rate increase of approximately one per cent, meaning a ratepayer with an average home assessed at $216,000 would pay an extra $15 annually.
Chief administrative officer Bill Jones said he expects the staff report to be presented to council at a meeting in April.
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