The St. Clair Catholic District School Board has approved the sale of the former St. Ursula Catholic School in Chatham to the Municipality of Chatham-Kent for $1,699,999.
Trustees passed the motion during a special meeting Tuesday afternoon. Chatham-Kent council had already approved the purchase at its Nov. 17 meeting.
“I want to thank Associate Director Amy Park and her team for their great work, as we continue to reduce our inventory of surplus properties,” board chair John Van Heck said.
Director of Education Lisa Demers said the ongoing sale of unused sites reflects the board’s financial and operational priorities.
“The ongoing reduction of the Board’s inventory of surplus buildings and lands is a demonstration of our commitment to the wise, ethical and responsible use of our resources,” she said.
The transaction was completed under the provisions of Ontario Regulation 374/23.
With the sale of St. Ursula, the former Georges P. Vanier Catholic School remains the board’s only surplus property following the recent reorganization of Catholic education in Chatham. That restructuring led to the construction of two new schools — St. Angela Merici, which opened in 2020, and St. Teresa of Calcutta, which opened in 2024 — and the closure and sale of several older schools, including Monsignor Uyen on Lark, St. Vincent on McNaughton East, St. Agnes on Croydon and St. Joseph on Raleigh.
The former Our Lady of Fatima Catholic School was refurbished and reopened as the new Monsignor Uyen in 2021.
