University of Windsor buys former Windsor Star building

The former home of the Windsor Star has a new owner.

The University of Windsor has purchased the building at 300 Ouellette Avenue, the top floor of which housed theStar newsroom since November 2012.

The deal closed on Tuesday, with the university paying$6.7 million dollars for the building, according to real estate firm CBRE Ltd.

Postmedia, which owns the star, told CBC News last month that it was surrendering the lease, and the Star would move out of the space by Jan. 31. The reason for the change wasn't provided.

The University of Windsor did not respond for requests for comment on Tuesday, but Ward 3 Coun. Rino Bortolin said he's heard the university may use the building as a tech and innovation centre.

"We'll look ... for the official rollout to hear exactly what's going to happen,"he said.

Star staff have been working at home since March 2020 due to the pandemic. While Postmedia didn't say whether the Star would move into another physical newsroom, Bortolinsaid he hoped that would be the case.

"I hope that they continue to have a physical presence in our downtown," he said. "Postmedia is changing quite a bit ... even just in the nature and the size of our local newsroom."

"Butregardless of how small it is, I hope they have a physical presence in our downtown core still."

Bortolin said he's heard the other tenants in the building will have the option to stay there under the new ownership.

"I hope the university takes this as an opportunity to engage the downtown," he said. "And what I mean by that is just sort of working with the BIA downtown, working with the other groups that are doing things downtown, and continuing along a lot of the things they've done in the past."