Heritage advocate seeks new use for St. Mary school
Janet French, The StarPhoenix
Published: Tuesday, February 05, 2008
A local advocate wants the city's Municipal Heritage Advisory Committee to lobby to save the St. Mary Community School building.
"It has to be looked at. What could we do with this building other than just wipe it out?" says Margaret Hendry, a board member of the Saskatchewan Architectural Heritage Society and the Saskatoon Heritage Society. She also serves on the city's heritage committee.
Last year, the city and province announced plans to revitalize a swath of Pleasant Hill, including building a new St. Mary school and several new, affordable-housing projects. The city bought and demolished 29 decrepit rental houses to clear the way.
Greater Saskatoon Catholic Schools has said St. Mary is desperate for a new building. It has six portables, and earlier this year, classes were held in the library and teacher's lounge because of space constraints. The gym's boiler is ancient, the building isn't wheelchair accessible and St. Mary needs more space for after school courses, a pediatricians' clinic and other community programs.
The school division is now waiting for money from the provincial government to build the new school.
In the original drawings depicting a revitalized Pleasant Hill, there's a field where the existing St. Mary building sits.
Hendry wants the heritage advisory committee to talk about St. Mary at its Wednesday meeting so the committee will be prepared to weigh in when a proposal for development on the site inevitably comes before the city.
"It's always sad, it seems to me, to lose our significant buildings," Hendry said. "They're part of the city's fabric. For those reasons, I certainly think we have to consider what can be done with the building before we get rid of it. There is some sort of feeling that the building might just be demolished."
Don Lloyd, superintendent of administrative services with the Catholic school division, said the school board and Ministry of Education have yet to decide the fate of Saskatoon's first Catholic school, built in 1913.
"If someone came forward and had an idea to reuse it, I certainly think the board would consider all requests," Lloyd said.
In the long term, the division has no interest in owning or maintaining the building, he said. Bringing St. Mary up to current building codes would require millions of dollars, he said.
In three weeks, the school board will get a first look at two proposals to renovate and re-use the building, he said -- one proposing a community centre and the other to convert it into housing.
The board is open to any proposal that would benefit the school, its students and the community, he said -- in other words, they're not looking for something like a night club.
Demolition is still an option, Lloyd said. Part of the revitalization plan is to increase green space in the area. It's also possible the land could be used for an ice rink, he said.
The division is cognizant of St. Mary's history, he said. He hopes the new building incorporates pieces of the original school, such as its cornerstone. A new St. Mary school would house a display with pictures and historical information about the original building.
Coun. Pat Lorje said Pleasant Hill residents should have a say in the fate of the building on the 300 block of Avenue O South.
She's heard suggestions from, "knock it down yesterday," to "save some of the facade and incorporate it into a new building."
"They haven't been saying, 'Improve the school for our kids,' " she said.
Lorje can see the building housing condominiums or as a community centre.
Hendry said her attempt to raise awareness about St. Mary's historical significance is not a bid to seek heritage status for the building, or to add it to the city's heritage registry. Those designations protect buildings from changes that would interfere with the historical aspects of the property.
Hendry said she's "relieved" to hear the school board will keep the school's heritage in mind.
"I'm glad to hear that there has been some consideration to there being alternative uses," she said.
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© The StarPhoenix (Saskatoon) 2008
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