Algonquin College is planning to shut down and sell the Perth Campus, putting an end to decades of skilled trades training and post-secondary education in our community.
The Perth Campus has been a vital part of our community since 1970 and provides the only post-secondary education in Lanark County, contributing to our local culture and economy.
In 2009, the federal and provincial governments recognized the need for the enhancement of heritage trades in Perth, committing nearly $10M of taxpayers’ money for an expansion of the Perth Campus to ensure its long-term future.
This is a critical community asset and should not be sold for development.
Together, we can save our campus and keep skilled trades education thriving in Perth.
Sign up below to make your voice heard, stay informed, and help stop the sale.
There is a solution worth fighting for and we need your help.
Led by life-long Perth resident and former Shopify COO, Toby Shannan, a local team is working to preserve and transform the campus into a new, non-profit centre for heritage construction and skilled trades education.
But we need to first stop the SALE!
We need your help to show the Ontario government that this campus matters—to our community, to the trades, to our young people, and to the future of our region.
We need you to contact The Hon. Doug Ford, Premier of Ontario, The Hon. Nolan Quinn, Minister of Colleges, Universities, Research Excellence and Security, and John Jordan, MPP for Lanark-Frontenac-Kingston. Tell them to stop the sale and support Toby’s proposal to keep trades training alive in Perth.
Every message counts.
Key Points to make:
The more people they hear from, the more likely the Ontario government is going to act.
Former Dean of the Campus and an advocate for the Save Perth College campaign
"The vision to create the Perth College would maintain this one-of-a-kind, purpose-built facility for heritage craft training in masonry and carpentry with a nation-wide reputation. This would keep opportunities for our young people, strengthen our local economy and maintain and even enhance its use as a unique future pipeline of talent for the skilled trades."
Former professor at Perth College and Town of Perth Community Officer
"“I’m supporting this campaign because community stewardship is everything in a town like ours. Perth College has long provided a strong, grounded path for local students, educators and residents alike."
Mayor of Perth
""As Mayor of Perth, I am thrilled about Toby’s proposal for rejuvenation of Algonquin College. The facility will not only help fill the gap in trades, so much needed if the Province is to fulfil its housing objective, it will also contribute to the local economy."
Past-President of the Lanark-Leeds Home Builders’ Association, former student and professor at the Campus, and an advocate for the campaign
"The college is an important asset for the region, for local trades and for the community at large. For over 40 years, the Perth Campus has been a hub for Heritage and Construction trades training, attracting students from all over Canada, the United States and the world. The very worthy goal of saving the campus and in keeping skilled trades education alive and thriving in Perth is paramount. Whatever energies I can dedicate to this effort, I’ll happily do that.”
Mayor of Carleton Place and Warden of Lanark County
"The closure of the Perth Campus will leave a significant gap in Lanark County's ability to train and retain skilled workers. We are committed to working with the province to ensure this facility continues to serve the people of Lanark County in a meaningful way."
Order of Canada, Willowbank
“Preserving our heritage is vital, and Perth Campus does just that - empowering students and strengthening the community. I fully support the campaign to keep Perth Campus thriving.”
Read the full letter of support
December 19, 2025
The Honourable Nolan Quinn
Minister of Colleges, Universities, Research Excellence and Security
5th Floor, 438 University Avenue
Toronto, Ontario M5G 2K8
Dear Minister:
We write to you jointly with concern for the impending closure of the Perth Campus of Algonquin College, and with hope and encouragement that you will use your authority to ensure the campus retains its purpose-built intention as a heritage trades college in Lanark County.
By way of background, we are former ministers who, in 2009, had the privilege of announcing a historic investment of nearly $10 million from the federal and provincial governments for the Perth campus. This funding, drawn from the pockets of Canadian and Ontarian taxpayers, was not a general grant to Algonquin College for redistribution at its discretion. It was a targeted commitment to the community of Perth and the surrounding region, aimed at advancing vital public policy goals including, strengthening post-secondary education in rural Eastern Ontario and establishing the Perth campus as a national leader in heritage trades training. At the time, we celebrated with the people of Perth and its broader community this partnership that would serve to protect Canada’s architectural heritage while addressing workforce needs in skilled trades.
At the time of the announcement, we emphasized that the investment would ensure a long future that would secure the Perth Campus as a leader in heritage trades and green technology for years to come. We highlighted the campus’s role in providing accessible, high-quality education to rural youth, fostering economic growth in Lanark County, and building a pipeline of skilled tradespeople to support Ontario’s construction and restoration sectors. The expansion funded by taxpayers transformed the campus into a purpose-built facility, attracting students from across Canada and beyond, and contributing millions of dollars annually in local economic impact through salaries, student spending, and community partnerships.
It was then with profound concern that we learned recently of Algonquin College’s plan to divest from the Perth campus by August 2026 (a mere 14 years since receiving this funding from taxpayers in 2011), relocating its programs back to its main campus and listing property for sale with the intention of using the proceeds for other institutional priorities at its main campus in Ottawa. This decision, driven by the College’s projected deficits amid broader sector challenges, directly contravenes the original intent of the 2009 investment. The funding was explicitly tied to sustaining post-secondary education “in Perth” not repatriating it to urban centers.
Redirecting these taxpayer-supported assets – physical infrastructure, specialized equipment, and intellectual property like curricula – back to Ottawa would undermine the very public policy objectives we championed, including rural access to education, heritage preservation, and regional economic vitality. Algonquin’s plans risks squandering a legacy that has produced graduates who have worked at restoring Parliament Hill and other national treasures, while exacerbating Ontario’s skilled trades shortage in a region already underserved by post-secondary options.
In addition, this proposed potential action by Algonquin would appear to the violate the very letter of the contractual arrangement between Ontario, Canada, and Algonquin. While Algonquin is certainly free to cease its programming on the Perth Campus, it does not appear to us that it is free to commercially dispose of a public asset that was funded in good faith by both Ontario and Canada for a specific purpose. Indeed, allowing this disposal puts into question the very notion of provincial and federal purpose-based funding. As former ministers we strongly believe it to be important that populations, through their elected officials, make decisions with taxpayer dollars, and not unelected and unaccountable post-secondary officials.
We also understand that Perth resident Toby Shannan is in the process of creating a new not-for-profit college with the intention of preserving the programming at the Perth campus and that he is also prepared to make a personal contribution of $10 million toward this endeavour.
We encourage you, as the current minister responsible for Ontario’s colleges and universities, to intervene decisively by directing Algonquin College to halt any sale process that would privatize this public asset for market-driven development. Instead, facilitate its transfer to a community-aligned steward (through either the Town or through Mr. Shannan’s not-for-profit) that will ensure the longevity of the Perth campus and uphold its founding mission.
We are confident that, under your leadership and guidance, the Perth Campus can continue to thrive as a strong community asset and as the heritage trades’ leader we envisioned.
Yours sincerely,
John Baird
Former Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities Government of Canada
John Milloy
Former Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities Province of Ontario
cc: The Honourable Doug Ford, P.C., MPP
Premier of Ontario
The Honourable Melanie Joly, P.C., MP
Minister of Industry
The Honourable David Piccini, P.C., MPP
Minister of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development
John Jordan, MPP
Lanark-Frontenac-Kingston
Scott Reid, MP
Lanark-Frontenac-Kingston