Old courthouse ready for new tenants as renovation work finishes

Dignitaries gathered for the reopening of the former county courthouse on Weber Street in Kitchener on Tuesday, Sept. 15, 2015.

A downtown Kitchener landmark is ready to reopen.

It’s been more than two years since the old county courthouse at 20 Weber Street East was made redundant by a new facility just blocks away.

The building is owned by the Region of Waterloo, which considered selling it but ultimately decided to go the renovation route.

“We’ve been able to refurbish it and bring it back to some of the splendour that it had when it opened,” regional chair Ken Seiling said Tuesday at a ceremony marking the end of renovations.

Included in the work were accessibility improvements, as well as the installation of insulation, which the building had never had before.

Various regional departments will be moved into the building, including facilities management and the regional archives.

The old courthouse was built in 1965 and held the region’s administrative officers for a time.

It will be open for public tours this Saturday as part of Doors Open Waterloo Region.