The City of Windsor is calling on developers to add to the city’s housing supply.
The city has launched an Expression of Interest (EOI) for the former W.D. Lowe Secondary School property at 874 Giles Boulevard East, near Parent Avenue.
The EOI is another step in the city’s Housing Solutions Made for Windsor (HSMFW) strategy.
It’s the fifth city property to advance in Windsor’s housing solutions initiative.
Mayor Drew Dilkens says the city is hoping to get some great submissions for the Lowe property.
“W.D. Lowe is one of the major programs in the queue because of the size—almost five acres of land here in the middle of the city,” says Dilkens. “It is a prime opportunity for a developer to get involved and to create some affordable housing here in the City of Windsor.”
He says the entire structure is not designated heritage.
Dilkens says only the facade of the building is.
“We’re willing to have a conversation on whether it has to stay in place or whether it can be moved forward, closer to the road,” says Dilkens. “We want to make sure we retain the facade but really maximize the type of development that can happen here and create more housing, create more affordable housing.”
He says the city wants to preserve the heritage feature of the building—the facade.
“Our biggest concern is preserving the facade, and there’s a small tower behind which you can see from the road; is preserving that part of the tower as well,” he says. “Everything else we’re open to figuring out what it would look like and working through the expression of interest process with a variety of developers, and we think there’s a lot of interest here because of the size of the property and the potential return that a developer could make.”
The city purchased the 4.89-acre property at the end of 2023 for $1.6 million.
The deadline for developers to submit a proposal is Tuesday, October 20.
According to the city, the EOI process is inviting qualified developers to submit proposals that align with the development vision for the site.
The city says developers are asked to provide design concepts, business and financial plans, and community benefit integration as part of the submission.