Neighbours say former Halifax school building poses community safety risks

People living near the abandoned St. Patrick’s-Alexandra School in Halifax are calling for action on the site.

Video that recently made rounds on social media shows windows being smashed out of the former St. Patrick’s-Alexandra School in Halifax earlier this week – and neighbours aren’t happy.

It’s not clear who was inside, but the incident is just the latest concern for people who live nearby.

Teri Boates says what happens inside the building is none of her business – unless it’s affecting the surrounding community.

“If you’re sending glass from, I’d say about three storeys up, onto the grass and the sidewalk of the community, then it does become an issue,” she says.

The building has been a source of concern for her over the years.

“It’s just hazardous, it doesn’t look good,” says Boates. “It doesn’t feel good knowing that your community has people just so willing to put other people in danger.”

Boates adds she sees a lot of vandalism.

“We hear a lot of screaming, a lot of threats being yelled, a lot of used needles and broken pipes on the ground,” she says.

On Thursday, at least one other window was knocked to the ground from inside the building.

The mayor, area councillor and firefighters have all previously raised safety concerns about the building.

However, a court dispute – between the developer who owns the property and the Halifax Regional Municipality – has been on hold, seemingly preventing further action from the city.

Margaret Casey, a board member of Brunswick Street Mission, was part of a trio of community groups who unsuccessfully tried to acquire the property more than a decade ago, before it was sold to Jono Developments.

“We had a vision for housing, mixed housing, community center,” she tells CTV News.

Casey agrees the time has come for change.

“I think it is certainly a safety hazard, a significant one, and should be taken down,” she says. “I think it’s clear that time has come to revise the ownership. It needs to be owned by people who are going to do something with it that will benefit the community.”

After several smaller-scale fires recently, Graeme Dunlop, who also lives nearby, worries about a bigger fire that could potentially have major consequences.

“It definitely poses alarm bells in my head, living so close,” he says. “I don’t want to have to deal with the potential property damage that could be caused from a major fire there. Not to mention the environmental costs. It could be a catastrophe if that building goes.”

He and Boates would like to see housing or a grocery store in place of the former school building.

Halifax Regional Police say they’ve been called to the address 48 times since April 1, 2024 – including assisting other agencies, suspicious people and unwanted people. However, they note not all incidents are related to the school itself.

“I wish that we could see the potential in that property rather than letting it become a danger to the community,” says Boates.

Thomas McCallum, the parish administrator of the nearby Saint George’s Round Church, told CTV News by phone that the church is “concerned” about the condition of the former school.

McCallum says housing would be great, adding it should be for mixed-income people, but he also thinks the building should include a grocery store to address the so-called food desert in the community. That’s a term used to describe areas with a lack of accessible food options.

CTV News reached out to lawyers for the city and developer Thursday.

The developer’s lawyer didn’t return our calls. The city’s lawyer only confirmed there is no future court date set.

That means it’s not clear when something could be done with the property.

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