$20M facelift for eyesore
New project will see longtime vacant building in Summerside converted to housing
SUMMERSIDE – A $20-million deal that will see an eyesore on one of Summerside's busiest streets converted into apartments is one where "everybody wins," says the city's mayor.
Basil Stewart says the development at the former vocational school property on Granville Street will help with the ongoing housing crisis in the community, bring construction jobs to the city and help clean up an area that sorely needs it.
“With everybody working together, we’ve finally got a package tied together, and it’s going to be redeveloped,” said Stewart.
“Everybody wins on this one.”
Stewart said he is also excited about the partnerships forged for the project, which include Charlottetown-based APM Group, non-profit Kings Square Housing and development Bayside Builders, as well as the city. Summerside is contributing $1.3 million to build municipal infrastructure to support the first phase of the project.
Phase 1 will include the construction of a new fourstorey, 60-unit affordable housing complex, as well as 30 micro-apartments. Construction of the latter is tentatively set to start in February, while the former will start in May.
It has taken longer than anyone could have hoped, but all the pieces are in place now to move forward on this important housing project, said Tim Banks, a Summerside native
and CEO of APM Group.
“We’ve got (a plan) in front of us now, which I think will be pretty exciting, and we see another phase to that as well that will be even bigger and better,” said Banks.
News of the project is something many in the city have been waiting years to hear. The property is 16 acres in the middle of the city’s primary retail area, and while there has been some development on the periphery of the lot over the past several years, the former school building itself has been empty for more than a decade, becoming more run down and a target for graffiti.
Banks said a number of factors have contributed over the years from keeping the building from either being torn down or developed, including that it contained more asbestos than originally thought. However, all parties involved now have a plan to move forward, and he’s confident they have a special project that will benefit the city.
“I don’t want my legacy as a developer in the region, in my hometown, to be tagged with a building that just doesn’t get developed. So, I felt it was important to see it through,” said Banks.
Kings Square Group, which is a non-profit housing corporation based in Charlottetown, manages units across the Island, including existing clients in Summerside.
Bill Campbell, president of the organization, said his group was honoured to be asked to be a part of this development.
It will own and manage the 60-unit affordable housing building, working with its funding partners to get it built.
It will consist of 20 seniors units, 30 mixed family/single people units and 10 market rate units. There will be several
accessible units as well.
“Our Island track record of bringing quality building stock to the market is something that we excel at, and being responsive to the needs of Islanders is something that we work hard to achieve,” said Campbell.
However, only a portion of the existing school structure will be developed in Phase 1 of the project.
The remaining portion, which locals would know as the old Centennial Pool, is part of a later phase of the project, which Banks said would be addressed at a future announcement.