Etienne Brule Public School closed as an elementary school in June 2014.
However, Algoma District School Board (ADSB) officials, Sault Mayor Christian Provenzano and city staff were on hand at the school building Friday to confirm a partnership between the board and the city of Sault Ste. Marie, dedicated to maintaining the site as a community hub.
The board will be responsible for the building itself to ensure various indoor programs and activities can continue, while the city will maintain the outdoor grounds for upkeep of existing and proposed new facilities.
Provenzano announced city council will be asked Monday to approve funding for construction of a Hub Trail spoke to run across Etienne Brule property, to connect Huron Street to the bike pump track to be built next year at Esposito Park.
If approved, construction of the Hub Trail portion would cost the city $160,000 and begin in the spring of 2016.
Funding for other proposed components for the Etienne Brule property would come from other sources, such as a special CN program, the federal government's CIP150 fund, the Ontario Trillium Fund, service club donations and private sector donations.
"I do believe that the plan (the Hub Trail portion, along with several other proposed improvements to the property) would be basically completed next year in its entirety," said Don McConnell, city planning director, speaking to SooToday.
"It would begin next spring, to be completed before the end of next summer."
Annual maintenance costs (of the Hub Trail portion and other proposed elements) would be less than $10,000 a year.
"That's a lot cheaper than us going out and trying to build a playground and basketball courts in this area," McConnell said.
The Mill Market community garden, formerly located at Esposito Park, will also have a new permanent home on the Etienne Brule property.
The Sault Ste. Marie Alternative Daycare will be moving into the building this fall.
Moving forward, there are plans for an urban orchard, to be funded through Ontario Works or a special CN program, a group of sugar maple trees, a First Nations Spirit Garden and a greenhouse.
There are also plans for improvements to the property's basketball courts.
The Captain Nicola Goddard Park located on the property is already well used by neighbourhood children.
Since its closure as a school one year ago, the building has already served as home to the Urban Aboriginal Alternative School (a partnership between the ADSB and the Indian Friendship Centre), the Teen Parent Initiative, and the StitchCo project, a joint training venture between Ontario Works and Superior Skills.
"We as a board made a difficult decision to close Etienne Brule's JK to Grade 3 program, and many saw this decision as the demise of this struggling area in our community, but today, through innovative thinking from our senior staff and city staff and community partners, we can celebrate the fact we have not abandoned this building or this neighbourhood but transformed the usefulness of this space," said Jennifer Sarlo, ADSB chair.
"I do think the potential for this building and its uses are much great now than they were before…now the energy around here, the learning that's happening inside the walls and what will happen outside the walls is a win-win for all of us," Sarlo said, speaking to SooToday.
"For many years Etienne Brule school was a fixture in this neighbourhood and though it has reached the end of its time as an elementary school it is finding new life as a community hub that supports multiple uses," Provenzano told Friday's audience.
(PHOTO: Mayor Christian Provenzano speaks with members of the public at Mill Market community garden's new home at Etienne Brule property, June 19, 2015. Darren Taylor/SooToday)