A community member who was one of the leaders of a fight to protect Laurentian University’s greenspace as the university underwent insolvency restructuring in 2021 and 2022 said she was “really happy” with an announcement from LU this week.
Part of that announcement said Laurentian does not plan to sell its greenspace to the province of Ontario to fund payouts to its creditors.
“We've been waiting for so long for a formal statement on their intent about the outcome for the greenspace and trails,” said Naomi Grant, chair of Coalition for a Livable Sudbury. "And so to finally get that statement, and to see it clearly say that land would not be sold, that the community’s love for the greenspace is very acknowledged, and that the intent of the university is to ensure public access to the green space, all of those things were really, really positive.”
Grant said the next step is to ensure long-term protection of Laurentian University’s greenspace.
She said she’d be looking “for a route for binding long-term protection, whether that's a conservation easement or some other form of protection.”
The community campaign to protect Laurentian University’s greenspace made a difference, she said.
“I'm really grateful for all the community members that raised their voice and put in their energy for something they really cared about, just to make sure that this was never forgotten when the decisions are being made,” Grant said.
Laurentian interim president Sheila Embleton said in a press release that she expects “that the community of Greater Sudbury, who passionately expressed the importance of the trail system and green space, will be satisfied with what is outlined in the transaction.”
The press release said the due diligence process as part of the property sales will serve to confirm that public trails (including the Trans Canada Trail System and the Rainbow Route Sudbury trail network) are properly identified.
The university will seek to strengthen partnerships with the community for the ongoing use and enjoyment of Laurentian’s natural spaces. Laurentian also seeks to ensure continued public access to the trail networks and green space.
Jeff Bangs, chair of Laurentian’s board of governors, said he gave a lot of credit to community members in ensuring LU’s greenspace remained in the university’s hands.
“I took the time to get out there, and still do, to walk those trails myself, and it didn't take me long to figure out this is special, and it's something worth saving and worth holding onto,” he said.
“So I'm really quite pleased that we were able to accomplish that, to keep it out of the mix.”
While Bangs will be leaving Laurentian’s board of governors this month, he said what he’d like to see now is a community discussion about protecting LU’s greenspace in perpetuity.
“Let's get all the partners together to really look at that greenspace as a legacy, and not only that, our sports facilities, too, I would throw in the mix,” he said.
“How can we best share this with the Greater Sudbury community, and make sure that it's there for the long, long term.”
Laurentian’s announcement this week surrounded an agreement on a “non-binding” term sheet for the sale of real estate to the province of Ontario worth up to $53.5 million, said a press release issued June 8.
Proceeds from the sale of this real estate will go to Laurentian’s creditors, as per the plan of arrangement under the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA) process.
The total land identified in the term sheet involves seven parcels, and covers 68.75 acres, which represents approximately nine per cent of the university’s total 750+ acres.
There are five buildings identified in the term sheet, which would be fully or partially leased back to Laurentian or NOSM University: East Residence, Vale Living with Lakes Centre and Watershed Building, Northern Ontario School of Medicine, Health Sciences Building and the Security and Maintenance Building.
“My understanding is for some of those buildings, there may be a parking lot beside it, or there may be a piece of land that it just makes sense to have it go with the building,” said Bangs. “It doesn’t include the greenspace and natural spaces.”
With the term sheet, the university is now in a position to explore the sale of these assets and work together with the province of Ontario to negotiate a purchase and sale agreement, by no later than Nov. 28, 2025.
“So we've got another two and a half years to complete the transactions and get that money to creditors,” said Bangs.
“I think best efforts will be made to do it sooner overall, and also as each transaction is completed now that we're going to negotiate on individual buildings and properties. My hope is that as they are concluded, we'll start to be able to pay money to creditors rather than wait to the end for everything to be bundled up. So that's the intent.
“We just have to see how the next round of negotiations go, and consultations with our community partners and Indigenous communities.”
Heidi Ulrichsen is Sudbury.com’s associate content editor. She also covers education and the arts scene.
