Old school in Essex gets new purpose
Building with ‘great bones’ turned into state-of-the-art medical centre
A $2-million conversion of a 1940s Essex schoolhouse has transformed the self-styled “friendliest pharmacy in Essex County” into an architectural marvel.
Pharmacists Tim Brady and Francesco Vella are on the verge of finishing up a massive project that turned a former elementary school on Talbot Road into a state-of-theart medical building that will feature a drugstore, a walk-in clinic, several physician offices, a dentist, x-ray services, an optometrist and a physiotherapist.
The partners, who own Brady’s Drug Store in Essex and Belle River, plan to open the new building in the fall, after nearly a year of construction.
Old buildings like the former school are solid structures that are perfect for reclamation projects, but bringing them up to 2016 standards requires a lot of skilled work.
In this case, the former Holy Name elementary school, which later became St. Michael’s alternative learning school, contained asbestos, which had to be removed. Cinderblock walls came down, the original terrazzo floor was restored, an elevator was built and an HVAC system, that required the removal of concrete planks on the roof, was installed.
“It’s a tank of a building,” Brady said. Brady’s Drug Store and a medical walk-in clinic were already operating next door, in a building that was once a Knights of Columbus hall. When Brady and Vella bought the school, they had to figure out a way to bridge the 30foot gap between the two buildings. Architects worked on a design that incorporated steel into the facade, and tied the two buildings together, resulting in a seamless structure.
Petretta Construction was hired as the general contractor. Jonathon Lot, vice-president of operations who oversaw the project, said while it wasn’t an easy conversion, it was one that was worth doing. “They built buildings extremely well back then,” Lot said. Brady and Vella were getting a building with “some great bones.”
The complex, including the current structure and the new school, will come in at a cost of about $2.5 million. Lot said a similar structure constructed from scratch would have a price tag in the range of $6 million. Tall windows that were typical of structures 75 years ago were replaced with new ones that replicate the look of the time. The wood railings in the stairwells were kept and restored. Walls were torn down between classrooms, but the feel of a school room remains, even though each one has about 1,000 square feet of space, enough for a physician’s medical practice.
Brady said he wanted a building that didn’t lose its past. “I want people to come here and realize, ‘I used to go to school here.’ ”
I want people to come here and realize, ‘I used to go to school here.’