The board chair of a housing project that would see the former St. Vincent’s high school in the Waterloo Village converted into an apartment complex contends it is not dead despite remaining millions of dollars short of funding.
The $12.5-million project would see the old school on Cliff Street, which was built in the late 19th century and used as a school for almost 100 years, converted into 58 apartments, half of which would be subsidized, along with a community room and early learning centre.
The project is 75-percent funded, but where the remainder of the 25-percent is coming from remains to be seen. Board chair Kevin McDonald says while the energy is there, they’ve been hearing that the business plan doesn’t work which he doesn’t agree with. He calls this a project of excitement but also of discouragement.
“Nobody knows the background, the energy that’s been consumed over three years to keep this thing running and going forward. If we have to go the private sector, we’ve got a couple avenues that we’re chasing down,” McDonald tells CHSJ News.
“There are other partners that we’re seeking for this funding and there are other directions like I said earlier, that we may open the early education centre first because we can fill it. Well that helps the community, it helps us because there’s hard money coming in.”
An information centre has just opened up at the school, and there is a website. McDonald says that they do have a waiting list.
The last ever principal of St. Vincent’s high is also on the board of directors for the project and Carey Ryan tells CHSJ News she retired in 2002 as principal of the school and she doesn’t think of the project as an apartment anymore, she thinks of it as a community.
