Law school finally heading downtown?
Province commits $20M to make longtime U of W vision a reality
The University of Windsor’s law school may be moving into the Paul Martin Building downtown after all. On the eve of the provincial election, the Ontario government committed $20 million to renovate the landmark federal building, bringing back to life a plan that had been shelved after years of fruitless lobbying, university president Alan Wildeman confirmed Monday. “As you know we have been working on this for five or six years,” he said. “We already made a decision to (instead) develop a law school on campus.”
The news that the province is now ready to provide funding “was completely unexpected” and very welcome, Wildeman said. The university was notified May 2 that the Ministry of Advanced Education and Skills Development intends to provide $20 million in 2019-20 to support the relocation of the law school, said ministry spokesman Yanni Dagonas. “The funding was approved as part of the recent Ontario budget process.”
Cabinet approved the funding to help renovate the 85-year-old downtown federal building just a week before the writ was dropped for the June 7 provincial election. Wildeman moved quickly to ensure the funding is locked in regardless of the election’s outcome. “The commitment we have received appears solid,” Wildeman said. “This is a very big step.” The university put its plan to move the law school downtown on hold last August. Wildeman and other local officials had grown weary after five years of talks and lobbying the province.
“I can’t recall how many trips I’ve made to Toronto,” trying to make the downtown deal happen, Wildeman said at the time. “We have to turn our attention to other options now.”
But discussions behind the scenes involving the city, university and province continued. The six-storey federal building has been mostly vacant in recent years and in poor repair. The federal government spent $3.3 million two years ago to repair the building ’s crumbling limestone facade. A plan to transfer ownership to the city couldn’t be executed because it lacked financial backing from the province to move the law school’s 600 students downtown — until now.
Under the complicated proposal, the city would be first in line to buy the Paul Martin Building when it is put up for sale by the federal government. Due to the high cost of renovations, the city has proposed purchasing the property for $1 and then turning it over to the university.
Windsor city council has agreed to spend $15 million to upgrade the building, provided the university agrees to move the law school there.
To make the plan work, the province had to commit another $20 million. The university would have to come up with the remainder of the money required to do the renovations.
Despite the “great news” the province has come to the table, there are “still miles to go” before the plan to move the law school downtown is finalized, Wildeman said. “We still have some work to do with our federal counterparts,” he said. “Hopefully, it’s still something of great interest to them. It’s win-win for everybody. To the best of my knowledge, they have no alternative purpose for that building.”
Cost estimates for moving the law school into the 150,000-squarefoot historical building also need to be firmed up, Wildeman said. He would not reveal the estimated price tag.
“(Based on converting the former armouries) we have pretty good sense on what it will take to repurpose an old building,” he said.
“If everything goes right,” the law school could open in the Paul Martin building in three or four years, Wildeman said. Public Services and Procurement Canada, which is responsible for the building, supports the idea of repurposing the facility. “PSPC continues to have discussions with the City of Windsor about the future of the Paul Martin Building and we are aware that the university and the province are having discussions around funding,” spokesman Jeremy Link said by email Monday. “PSPC remains supportive of an agreement to transfer the building to the city for a nominal fee for continued public purpose.”
Mayor Drew Dilkens said the city remains committed to bringing the law school downtown.
“This is a project we have been working on for many years,” he said.
“Although I haven’t heard any- thing official with respect to an announcement ( by the province), it would be exciting if it is forthcoming.”
University of Windsor law school students — most from out of town — spend their time in the law building and don’t usually have classes elsewhere on campus, which makes it different than the other two university schools downtown — social work and creative arts, Dilkens said. “They will need to live here, will want quick and easy access, so will look for a (residence) downtown close by.” That would provide a big boost to the city’s core, he said. “This is probably one of the biggest things that will happen for downtown,” said Larry Horwitz, chairman of the Downtown Business Improvement Association. “It would be the cherry on top of the sundae.”
The law school would bring hundreds of students and professors downtown, where they would patronize businesses and restaurants, he said.
“They have money, so this is a huge economic generator,” Horwitz said. “It also takes a historical building on our main street and renovates it which is hugely valuable and something that so many other cities have been doing. There are so many benefits here for downtown and Windsor as a whole.
“We have gone through so many highs and lows on this process, if the funding has been secured we need to send out a lot of thank-you letters.”