Classrooms to condos: Can Sudbury's former school properties help with housing affordability?

With their prime locations and established infrastructure, former school properties offer several advantages to those who have the resources to convert them into housing.

In the Greater Sudbury area, several former schools have hit the market in recent years. While public sector bodies like municipalities and long-term care homes legally get first pick, these properties have mostly ended up in the hands of private developers.

In its housing supply strategy, the City of Greater Sudbury has decided to take on "a supportive role" when it comes to redeveloping school properties.

That decision was based on a deep-dive study specific to the municipality, says senior planner Melissa Riou.

Riou says a report looked at different aspects of such projects including the conditions of the schools, the requirement for development approval, and operational sustainability.

"Balancing out the risks and opportunities, the city has decided to not take a proactive approach in terms of acquiring schools," she said.

Instead, the city is focusing on streamlining the development approvals process for these projects.

"We're in the process of updating the zoning bylaw to allow more residential use in the existing [school properties]," said Riou.

An expensive but viable project, says developer

The city's planning committee is currently looking at approving a school conversion project in the New Sudbury area.

Devla Properties Inc. took possession of the former St. Bernadette School in January, almost 10years after the little Catholic school on Auger Street closed its doors.

"We had an interest in it after we drove by and saw that it had a fair piece of land attached to it," said the company's president, Peter Nault.

"The plan is to renovate the school completely, pretty much right down to the shell," he said, adding that the work would create 20 units geared to seniors.

If its plans are approved, Devla Properties would also build three townhouses in the back of the property, adding an additional 54 units.

It's the company's first attempt at converting a school property into housing.

"We've hired pretty much every consultant possible," said Nault.

"These are expensive properties to convert, but I mean we're in the market to do it."

Asked if rent in these new proposed units would be considered affordable, or below the average market value, Nault said costs have yet to be finalized.

Similar projects already have waitlists, says another developer

A similar project was undertaken at the former Pinecrest Public Schoolin Hanmer in 2021.

Dominium Estates owner Krista Vis says she and partner live down the street from that property and were driving by it every day before deciding to purchase it.

"The layout is very ideal for residential, especially geared towards seniors because for the most part they are one level structures," said Krista.

After the redevelopment work was complete, it didn't take long for the new 20 units to fill up.

"It's at full occupancy now and there is a waitlist," she said.

Rents in the converted Pinecrest elementary school range from $1,500 to $2,600 per month depending on the square footage.

The latest data from the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) suggests the average market rent for a two-bedroom unit in Greater Sudbury is $1,367 per month.

Dominium Estates is also currently in the process of finishing 14 additional townhomes in the backyard of the former school, with most of the units already spoken for.

"It made a lot of sense to construct the townhouses as well," she said.

City could always decide to take on a more proactive approach

Asked whether she would take on another school conversion process, Vis says it is something the company would most likely entertain again.

While rents in these projects would not necessarily be considered affordable, Vis points out that the tenants moving into the units are typically selling larger homes, thereby making other types of housing available in the process.

Asked whether the city would consider keeping a former school in the public sphere by taking on a redevelopment project, Riou said council could always reconsider its position depending on the situation.

"We do review these properties If a site were identified as meeting all of the criteria, then that is potentially something we would bring forward to council for their consideration," said Riou.

Greater Sudbury currently has a historically low vacancy rate of 1.1 per cent, according to the CMHC.