Brampton’s controversial $80-million purchase of a Sandalwood Parkway building—intended to house the city’s new automated speed enforcement (ASE) ticket processing centre—is raising fresh questions after Premier Doug Ford confirmed his government will ban photo radar technology across Ontario.
The nearly eight-acre property, once owned by Alectra Utilities, was sold to the city in September 2023 for $77.9 million, with another $2.1 million in taxes, fees, and legal costs. The site is also used for city services such as recreation, elections, fleet storage, and IT operations.
Documents released from the city’s closed session meetings reveal that the building was purchased from local businessman Bikram Dhillon, CEO of the BVD Group, who had acquired it for $32.5 million just three years earlier. Dhillon’s own appraisal pegged the value at $85.18 million, while the city’s independent valuation came in between $65 million and $68 million, and a third-party broker estimated $72 million to $78 million.
Despite the wide price range, council unanimously approved the deal, saying that multiple appraisals and reviews supported the purchase as being “consistent with market value.”
Dhillon and Mayor Patrick Brown were seen together at several community events prior to the sale, including Dhillon’s recognition as Brampton Citizen of the Year 2023, a month before the property transaction closed. The city insists that award decisions are handled by an independent selection committee and not by council or the mayor directly. Brown has said he never discussed the property deal with Dhillon.
The ticket-processing facility was part of Brampton’s expansion of its ASE program from 50 to 185 speed cameras, intended to target dangerous driving in community safety zones. But with Ford’s government now eliminating ASE province-wide, the city may be left with an expensive, underused asset.
Brampton South MPP Hardeep Grewal dismissed concerns over the purchase, saying the property remains a valuable asset that “can be repurposed.” Ford echoed that stance in an Oct. 7 letter to Mayor Brown and other mayors, rejecting requests for provincial compensation. “I encourage you to cover these costs by insisting speed-camera operators do so—or by using the tens of millions you’ve already taken from hard-working people through these programs,” Ford wrote.
With the ASE program’s future now effectively dead, Brampton faces a difficult question: what to do next with its $78-million ticket centre and hundreds of speed cameras soon destined for shutdown.