Construction of the new, nine-storey Trinity Tower is well underway at the former site of the Holy Trinity Anglican Church on Northern Avenue — and now, it has all of the loans in place in order to get the $35-million project done.
On Friday, Sault Ste. Marie MP Terry Sheehan visited the site to announce $34 million in low-interest, repayable loans and $1.3 million in forgivable loans from the federal government through the Affordable Housing Fund, in addition to $70,000 in funding from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation.
“It’s projects here in Sault Ste. Marie that are getting attention — they want to replicate this made-in-Sault Ste. Marie solution that you guys all developed, and I was proud to champion it in Ottawa,” Sheehan told a room full of project stakeholders at a neighbouring building next to the construction site.
“Not only are you doing something very special here for your church — for your congregation, for the community that is so needing affordable housing — you’re doing it for the country.”
Operated by the Cara Community Corporation, Trinity Tower will house 108 rental units, which includes 33 affordable housing units for seniors. The building will include a chapel on the ground floor, in addition to commercial spaces for offices, food, services, and retail.
The project is being funded through a 50-50 partnership between Cara Community Corporation and SalDan Developments Ltd., which has leveraged a number of private investors.
Cara Community Corporations President Geoffrey Meakin says the project has been five years in the making.
“I want to thank you all for organizing this day, for organizing five years of effort — and for being a team,” said Meakin. “No single person wins the game. It’s the team that wins the game.”
Trinity Tower is also receiving three years of tax relief from the City of Sault Ste. Marie in order to spur on the expansion of the city’s housing supply.
“Today, we are here to celebrate a project that really exemplifies the efforts of all the parties involved to meet the community’s need for more housing, while meeting the objectives of places like Cara Community that want to house people, house them affordably, and want to provide a place of worship for those that have worshipped on these lands for many, many decades,” said Sault Ste. Marie Mayor Matthew Shoemaker.
Construction is expected to be completed by the winter of 2026.