The death fences are up, and the clock is ticking down on the old Prince of Wales public school.
Once a key part of the surrounding neighbourhood, in the nearly two decades since its closure, the neighbourhood has nearly vanished. Most of the houses right near the school have given way to acres and acres of surface parking for the University or have been converted into student rentals.
The demographics of the area have changed, and some can argue that the closure of Prince of Wales was the catalyst to that change. The site will be home to the new Engineering Building for the University.
When originally designed, the building was intentionally situated on the site to sit opposite the road across the street. Walkerville Collegiate is also designed like this.
When originally designed by the Detroit architectural firm of Van Leyen, Schilling & Keough after World War One for the Sandwich School Board, the building was a simple 4 room school house. Several additions over the years changed the layout and feel of the original design.
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This is sad news. This should have definitely been incorporated into plans for the new Engineering complex. There is a complete lack of creative planning and respect for heritage going on here.
Yeah Andrew is right - there is no way Assumption would be sold for a buck. The diocese does have a gold mine there though.
When they close Assumption, the Diocese will fence off the Church keep the parking lot and either keep the revenue from that to them selves, or lease the lots to the University for a good chunk of change. I would not be surprised if they pave over the front lawn as well for Parking.
As for Prince of whales...The closure of that school was the last straw for so many families, and shortly after that they all moved on. The way the city has let the streets around the University to go to hell is sickening. That area USED to be one of the nicer areas of the city.
In fairness to the city, it's not really their fault that the area surrounding the University has "gone to hell". Blame the absentee slumlords, er, landlords who rent out the homes to students. It's basically a giant student ghetto now.
I grew up on Askin and remember when the whole neighbourhood was filled with families, children, and old people - in other words, a real neighbourhood. Slowly, almost imperceptibly, the old folks died, the families moved out, and the slumlords bought up most of the homes. I don't know how many of you have seen what student housing looks like, but a formerly nice home can turn from beautiful to shit in about one semester.
The sad thing is that unlike some "student ghettos" in other cities, Windsor's isn't a cultural hub filled with hip cafes, shops, and the like. It's just a ghetto filled with out of town kids who scraped into "Last Chance U" and don't give a shit about this city.
I didn't say the Diocese would give the church with all the land to the university. I'm thinking more along the lines of them severing the church and the land under it from the rest of Diocese's surrounding land, i.e., parking lots, and probably leasing the rest to the University. Seeing how much churches go for, like the one on Dominion, in much better shape and demolishable that went for half a mil, I don't expect a lot more for one that's gonna have to sit there for another decade without maintenance to be demolished like the Prince of Wales.
Also, I doubt the land around Assumption is worth a whole lot anyway if the Diocese were to accept an offer based on market value. Definitely not in the millions. Just take a look at all the $50K houses you can get west of the University within wakling distance to the University. There's absolutely no basis for a multi-million dollar price tag for those lands unless it's directly under Matty Mouron's planned second bridge.
WFW wrote: The sad thing is that unlike some “student ghettos†in other cities, Windsor’s isn’t a cultural hub filled with hip cafes, shops, and the like. It’s just a ghetto filled with out of town kids who scraped into “Last Chance U†and don’t give a shit about this city.
You hit the nail on the head with this. I've always hoped that the U of W area of Wyandotte and University would evolve but it just hasn't. The University needs to improve it's status and then it will become a place where students desire to come. Until then, sadly not much is likely to change in that area. Frankly, proper zoning can prohibit the conversion of single family residences. Then zone in more apartment buildings and student residences. That way the neighbourhoods are protected. City Council has to have a vision and a brain to achieve that though.