Earlier this week, we heard that the former grounds of Souris School in Weyburn were sold. The announcement came after the site was put up for tender, with a closing date of February 2nd.  

“When the tender closed, we had a submission from Bridge Road Land Management for the purchasing of the article of land, and the board accepted that bid on February 15th at our local board meeting,” explained Gord Husband, the deputy director of Human Resources and Infrastructure with the South East Cornerstone Public School Division. The bid was for $103,500. 

The offer from the Winkler, Manitoba-based developer wasn’t something that the board was disappointed with, Husband added. 

“I think anytime you sell public land, you’re never really sure what kind of offer you’re going to get, but we felt it was a very fair offer considering the location of the land, and where our past experiences were trying to sell it, so we’re pretty pleased.” 

The sale of the Souris School grounds was the final step in the closure of three school properties in Weyburn after the opening of Legacy Park Elementary School for the 2021-22 school year. The site of Queen Elizabeth School remains empty at this point in time, and the grounds of Haig School were granted to the City of Weyburn to be used as greenspace.  

The memory of the three schools does continue to live on at Legacy Park Elementary School though.  

“When we closed down Queen Elizabeth, Haig and Souris, there was a number of different locations where the materials, the historical value materials, were located, and then we’re very lucky in front of Legacy Park we had commemorative benches put in place to basically have the legacy of those three schools to exist in our community,” Husband added. “If you haven’t had a chance to go by and check those benches out in front of the main walkway of the school, please do so. They’re beautiful.” 

The developer who purchased the Souris School property plans to build a multi-level residential senior care complex. No timelines have been announced for the completion of the sale, or for the start of building the complex, however.