The Toronto Catholic District School Board (TCDSB) has purchased a building housing the city’s oldest all-girls Catholic school. Loretto Abbey Catholic Secondary School was acquired on March 9, from the Sisters of Loretto, who have presided over it for more than 150 years. The deal, which was four years in the making, ensures that the building will continue to serve as a school and may help the TCDSB cope with ever-pressing space issues.

The school was originally established in 1847 by the Sisters of Loretto. Previously located on Wellington Street West, the sisters made the choice to relocate to Mason Boulevard in the Yonge Street and Wilson Avenue area in the late 1920s. The Tudor-Gothic-style school was opened in 1928, joined the TCDSB in 1986 and is home to 929 students and houses 50 sisters.

Evanne Hunter, the Loretto Sisters’ provincial leader said this was a sad time for her and the sisters, many of whom have spent their entire religious lives in the abbey. “We wish we did not have to do this, but because of the sale to the school board, we wont be completely forgotten,” said Hunter. “The building will still be here. It will still be a Catholic girls’ school.”

Angelo Sangiorgio, the associate director of planning and facilities for the TCDSB, affirmed that the board is very pleased with the purchase. “We have been interested in the property for some time. It is a very successful school with a long history. So if the opportunity ever arose, we knew we would follow through with the purchase,” he said.

Most of the sisters will be permitted to remain in the abbey until 2016, and others that are currently living in the infirmary will be permitted to stay until 2030. They will then be moving to their downtown property, Loretto College, located at St. Michael’s College on the University of Toronto campus.

“This will be better for many of the sisters,” Hunter said, noting that all basic needs will be within walking distance for the sisters.

Whereas this may be a sad time for some, the sale ensures that students will be able to continue attending school at the abbey following in the tradition set out by the sisters.

“Everything changes, and we have to be prepared to accept what change requires,” Hunter said.