Shuttered St. Thomas school to be turned into supportive housing

It was built as an elementary school in the late 1800s, helping prepare tens of thousands of young people for adulthood in the century that it operated.  

Now, the former Balaclava Public School in St. Thomas will be turned into supportive housing, launching those who will live there into independent living after struggles with mental illness and addiction. 

"We did a former textile mill in Woodstock, a number of churches, we're working on two historic hospital buildings in London, but we've never done a school before," said Jeff Neven, the CEO of Indwell, the non-profit that will be redeveloping the former school into apartment units. 

"About half of our projects are adaptive reuse. We love heritage. We love it when a building is preserved, when people can see what was there but also see new life in it." 

The Balaclava project will be the third for Indwell in St. Thomas, and will have 78 supportive housing units — 36 of them retrofitted in the former red brick school building and the remaining 42 in a new addition. 

"This site will be a continuation of our spectrum of support that we have in the community," Neven said. 

 The Railway City Lofts, opened in 2021, help people who are coming directly out of homelessness in St. Thomas, and offer addiction support, behavioural therapy, health care and help with medication and meals. 

The Station, opened in 2023, offers more independent living, as will the Balaclava development. Indwell partners with the city of St. Thomas on the projects. 

"The need for supportive housing has never been more urgent, and this partnership with Indwell is an essential part of the solution," said Mayor Joe Preston. 

"We're building pathways to stability and opportunity for those who need it most." 

Once building permits are issued, it will be about two years before tenants can move in, Neven said.