Sudbury city council backs $1.5M plan to convert nunnery into supportive housing

A Greater Sudbury city council vote next Tuesday could see a historic Sudbury nunnery transformed into 135 units of supportive housing.

A nine-story downtown building with roots in the community could soon be a centerpiece in Greater Sudbury’s strategy to end homelessness.

Next Tuesday, city council will vote on a proposal to transform 30 Ste Anne Road – a century-old building that once served as a nunnery and the Diocese of Sault Ste. Marie – into a 135-unit supportive housing facility.

“The community has been looking for us to come up with these types of solutions,” said Ward 5 Coun. Mike Parent.

“The beauty of this, a really is kind of a private owner that’s taking care of this. With respect to the investment, it’s a program that already exists that the city will be contributing to.”

Councillors Parent and Pauline Fortin are championing the initiative.

Fortin and Parent will be presenting a report recommending $1.5 million in incentives through the Community Improvement Plan (CIP).

Because the CIP is a pre-existing fund – bolstered by the federal Housing Accelerator Fund – the project will not require an increase in local property taxes.

“The funds are there,” said Fortin.

“It’s not going to affect the levy. It’s about fixing old building facades and turning them into something we can use.”

When a small group of investors purchased the property, their initial vision initially was to create housing for seniors or veterans. However, the release of the city’s ‘Roadmap to End Homelessness’ in May 2024 changed everything.

“We were reading it and I’m like, ‘Oh my gosh, our project checks this box and this box,’” said investor Mandy Branham.

“We wanted something to be able to showcase how beautiful the building truly is while meeting the city’s most urgent needs.”

Branham said she and the group contacted Parent.

“When you look at the housing strategy prepared by staff, we know that the shelter warming space is part of that strategy in a transitional home,” Parent said.

“Then there’s supportive housing and then affordable housing. That missing piece was really in the supportive housing.”

The building is currently housed by three tenants, including Closet Share.

“We are talking to all three of them,” Branham said.

“The current tenants will be phased appropriately as the renovations come along.”

Branham said the facility will be managed in partnership with Sudbury Supportive Housing, offering a home for those in need while offering wrap-around supports.

“They’re going to have the support needed to be able to stay there,” Parent said.

“The goal will be to transition them to, either semi-independent, fully independent living within 12 to 18 months.”

Because the building is already divided into smaller rooms, renovations are mostly limited to plumbing updates, such as adding showers to each floor.

“The heat is on, the elevator works, the water flushes, the toilet’s flush,” Branham said.

The investors said that renovations will be completed in a phased approach.

“It’s going to be very phased out, which creates a lot of room for the give and take, the tweaking that’s going to be needed for the clients, for the services that are around and for the workers within the building,” said Branham.

If council approves the plan on Feb. 10, the investors hope to have the first floor ready for residents by early spring.