Correctional Service Canada provides update on the disposal process of Saint-Vincent-de-Paul Penitentiary

OTTAWA, ON, June 23, 2022 /CNW/ - The Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) is entering the next phase in the disposal of one of its properties – the former Saint-Vincent-de-Paul Penitentiary in Laval, Quebec.

CSC is currently working on the disposal process of this federal property in order to be ready for sale to Canada Lands Company (CLC) by the year 2024.

CSC will continue to work on several due diligence steps as part of the disposal process, including land surveys and environmental, archeological and heritage assessments, which will be completed by the end of 2023.

Information about CSC's intent to dispose of the property was shared with Indigenous groups in the fall of 2021. CSC will continue to work with Public Services and Procurement Canada, Justice Canada and CLC to complete the disposal due diligence requirements and next steps. CSC has been working, and will continue to work, closely with experts to ensure that appropriate heritage considerations and obligations are transferred to the new owner.

CSC will be consulting with other levels of government and stakeholders, including Indigenous groups to seek public interest in this property.

QUOTES

"CSC is a long-standing member of the Laval community, having made important contributions to public safety for more than a century. As promised by the Prime Minister during his recent visit to Laval, our government is committed to ensuring that this historic site can serve Lavallois long into the future. Thank you to CSC staff, stakeholders and all levels of government for working together to ensure a smooth transition of this property to the community." – The Honourable Marco Mendicino, Minister of Public Safety

"The Saint-Vincent-de-Paul Penitentiary is an important part of our community's history, and I am looking forward to seeing, in 2024, the materialization of the strategic disposal process that was launched in 2018. This is an exciting opportunity for our community in Laval, and I am pleased that work is progressing on the land transfer process." – Angelo Iacono, Member of Parliament for Alfred-Pellan

"I am pleased that CSC is closer to transferring this historic property. Although it has not been a correctional facility for some time, it is an important part of CSC's history. This will close another chapter for many employees and community members, where this institution was part of their community for more than 100 years." – Commissioner Anne Kelly

QUICK FACTS

• Formerly the site of a Sisters of Providence, Sacred Heart Convent, in 1861, the Government of Canada East purchased the site to establish a reform school. In 1872, the federal government purchased the site from the Province of Quebec and renovated it for use as a federal penitentiary.
• The first offenders, officers and their families were transferred to Saint-Vincent-de-Paul Penitentiary by steamship from Kingston Penitentiary on May 19, 1873.
• Saint-Vincent-de-Paul-Penitentiary ceased operating as a federal correctional facility and was declared a surplus asset in 1989.
• The property was declared a National Historic Site of Canada in 1990.

LINKS

• History of penitentiaries in Canada: the early years
• National Historic Site of Canada

SOURCE Correctional Services of Canada

Media Relations, Correctional Service Canada, [phone], [email protected]