Creating housing using existing structures
While there may not be any educational music videos playing, there’s a good chance a happy dance will be performed when an affordable housing project in Shelburne County is completed later this year.
Schoolhouse Rocks Incorporated, a partnership between Seattle investor Robert Pinkley, local general contractor Morgon Nickerson and his father Jeff Nickerson, have their first affordable housing project about 75 percent completed.
The former Port Latour Consolidated Elementary School is being converted into a 15-unit one-and-twobedroom apartment complex, which will include four wheelchair-accessible units. Each unit will come with appliances, including a washer and dryer.
A list of interested tenants is being compiled by the company, whose name is a nod to the old schoolhouse they are renovating, as well as the animated musical educational children’s television program that originally ran from 1973 to 1985.
“We plan to develop affordable housing in this end of the province, southwest Nova Scotia. This is our first project,” says Jeff Nickerson. “We’re trying to get the word out that we’re around and that we’re looking for properties. We’re trying our best to make it as affordable as possible. That’s key.”
A priority for the trio is to provide housing for people at the “lowest cost possible,” adds Morgon Nickerson.
“We think that some of the ways the real estate market has gone it’s priced a lot of people out of being able to get an apartment. Even myself, I couldn’t imagine renting some of the apartments out there and affording it. That was the big thing when we took it on. We would like to be able to provide a nice apartment for rent that people can actually afford,” he says.
Jeff adds that the “main crux of the company” is to find as many underutilized buildings as they possibly can “and hopefully transform them into affordable housing.”
Pinkley says by repurposing existing structures, they are able to reduce the environmental impact of new construction and make use of already existing resources.
“We believe that by repurposing existing buildings, we can help to address the housing shortage in a responsible manner,” he says.
“Our goal is to provide safe, affordable, and sustainable housing options for individuals and families in southwest Nova Scotia – helping to alleviate the housing crisis and create a more vibrant and inclusive community,” says Pinkley. “Additionally, these sustainable housing options are designed to be energy efficient, reducing utility costs for residents and further contributing to environmental sustainability.”
Schoolhouse Rocks already has its sights set on several other unused existing structures in the region, including the former Amirault’s Hill School in Yarmouth County, which is similar to the former Port Latour school and is still repairable.
“We looked at the Shelburne courthouse (former Shelburne Municipal Administrative Centre) a couple of weeks ago. There’s good potential there,” says Morgon. “We’re investigating the lowincome housing down the road, which has since been boarded up. We’re interested in that. We’re waiting for the government to make some decisions about that.”
A six-unit housing complex in Port Latour operated by the Western Nova Scotia Housing Authority has been vacant for some time.
“Down here (in southwestern Nova Scotia) there’s a lot of empty buildings that are not leaking or anything. The water is still turned on in some of them. Some still have power,” notes Jeff, adding the company is looking to work with the province to see if there are any low-interest loans through affordable housing programs “to help us along, especially as we develop more buildings and get more money invested.”
With its Port Latour project, Schoolhouse Rocks plans to be in a position to start renting the seven apartment units on the top floor this summer.
“We’re going to have split occupancy where people will have a much cheaper rate while we are finishing the downstairs. We’re trying to make it as energy-efficient as possible. It’s super well insulated,” says Morgon.
“It’s not that you’re going to make a ton of money at this,” he adds. “I just can’t see where people are going to live otherwise. If you don’t do something now and get these buildings to stand on their own and maintain themselves, they will be torn down.”
The former Port Latour school was built in 1956 and closed in 2000. Once the units are completed, the plan is to create a community garden on the grounds. “We want it to be like a small community,” Morgon says.
Further information is available online at https:// www.schoolhouserocks.ca/ .