The Regional Municipality of Durham is hoping a former school property will help meet the community’s need for affordable and market rent housing.
The property, located at 300 Ritson Rd. S. in Oshawa, includes a former elementary school building that operated until 2012. The school building was originally built in 1923 and expanded in 1928. The unused parts of the property are being considered for mixed-use, sustainably built housing.
Oshawa local business owners and community service providers are invited to provide feedback July 18 at the Spark Centre (2 Simcoe St. S., Oshawa, Ontario, L1H 8C1). The Local Businesses Workshop will be held from 8 to 9 a.m., and the Community Service Providers Workshop will follow from 10 a.m. to noon.
For more information about the Ritson School Project and to get involved, please visit durham.ca/RitsonSchool.
“The Ritson School has a legacy of serving the community and this exciting project will honour that through community supports and services, and affordable housing,” said John Henry, regional chair. “I look forward to redeveloping this property into something that will continue to make a positive difference in Durham Region.”
The Region of Durham purchased the site from the Durham District School Board and took possession on Jan. 26, 2022.
In November 2020, Durham Regional Council approved the Master Housing Strategy and committed to the initiation of 1,000 new affordable rental/supportive housing units and to increase the supply of medium- to high-density housing in Durham.
The vision for the Ritson School Project will see the renovation of the former elementary school building to be used for community programs that meet the current and future needs of residents in the surrounding neighbourhoods and communities. The project will also examine the unused lands on the school property for opportunities to include mixed-use, sustainably-built housing.
The original school structures were built in 1923 and 1928. The proposed site has a site frontage of 415 feet on Ritson Road South and 544 feet on Huron Street. There is a former elementary school situated on the property that was operating until 2012. The existing building is a three-story structure of masonry, brick, and block construction.
The region has committed to developing 1,000 new affordable rental housing units by 2024, a plan that is detailed in At Home in Durham, the Durham Housing Plan 2014-2024, and the region’s Master Housing Strategy.