Chatham-Kent is purchasing another vacant property.
After some debate, council opted to pull the trigger and purchase the former St. Ursula School on Lacroix Street in Chatham.
The plan is to demolish the building and seek a developer to build affordable housing there, according to Ray Harper, director of municipal housing.
It cost the municipality $1.7 million to obtain the land.
Not all councillors thought making the purchase was a wise move.
“I think we’re buying up too many properties right now for affordable housing,” South Kent Coun. Ryan Doyle said. “We need it (affordable housing), but we have too many properties on the go. I don’t think this is the best use of our money at this point.”
North Kent Coun. Rhonda Jubenville agreed.
“I think we’re doing our part in following along with the initiative in finding buildings for affordable housing. I think we just need to find some balance with how much money the taxpayer purse has versus acquiring all these properties,” she said.
Chatham Coun. Brock McGregor said he’d rather see the land fall into municipal hands than wait for a developer scoop it up on their own.
“When a property like this goes into the hands of a private developer, we lose control over what can happen to a property. It can just sit there, get boarded up, or have squatters,” he said. “When we purchase a property, we can have input into the development.”
Harper said the plan is just that – for the municipality to prepare the property and have a private developer build the affordable housing.
“Attainable rent, affordable home ownership – there are a lot of different options that could come to the table,” he said.
The $1.7-million purchase price for the 4.44-acre parcel of land is in line with a third-party appraisal of its value, according to a municipal report.
The funds will come from the municipality’s affordable housing reserve.
The municipality currently has three affordable housing projects under construction. One is at 101 McNaughton Ave. which will be a 27-unit senior’s building. Target completion date is late spring of 2026.
Properties at 24 Redwood Cr. And 179 Eugenie St. in Chatham will see 11 family units built, featuring a mix of affordable, deeply affordable and attainable housing. Completion dates there are slated for late 2026.
And 199 Westcourt Blvd. is in the design stage. It will feature 72 units of affordable, deeply affordable and attainable housing. Tender for construction on that site is expected to go out early next year.
On top of those, Chatham-Kent has an agreement in place to purchase 110 Sandys Street – with ownership expected to be switched to the municipality in late spring of next year. The plan is to renovate the current site of Meadow Park long-term care over to supportive housing.
As well, the municipality has purchased and demolished the former St. Agnes School at 55 Croydon St. A request for expressions of interest from private developers to seek proposals that will include affordable housing is expected to go out soon.
The property at 92 Churchill St., the former John N. Given School is also headed into municipal hands. Officials said the next steps are for administration to complete redevelopment options for council’s consideration in a future report, and “ideally these options would include family affordable housing.”
Property on Park Avenue East and Park Street near the Pathways on Park tiny cabin facility is undergoing remediation at the moment. Site development plans are in the works for supportive and a mix of affordable, deeply affordable, and attainable housing.
