‘Neglected’ downtown Oshawa office building to be converted into 119 rental units

The redevelopment of a prominent building in downtown Oshawa has begun, with the partial demolition and renovation of a seven-storey building at 40 King St. W. getting underway this week with an opening date sometime this fall.

The office building, which has been largely vacant for several years and suffering from neglect, will be converted into mixed-use commercial/residential building featuring 119 rental units (105 2-bedroom, 14 1-bedroom) and 10,000 sq.ft. of commercial space on the ground floor.

Feroze Virani, the president of 1000923055 Ontario Inc., has a history in downtown Oshawa, having brought Ontario Tech University to 11 Simcoe St. N. in 2008 when the Faculty of Education was established and was also the developer of a block of King Street East containing the 59-suite La Quinta hotel.

Virani’s company is promising that at least 20 per cent of the residential units will meet the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation’s affordability criteria, with rents capped at 30 per cent of median household income for a minimum of 10 years and no plans for future condominium conversion.

The second floor of the renovated building at 40 King St. W. will include amenities for residents such as a party room/lounge, library, and gym. The basement level will contain storage lockers for residents of the building.

Some of the apartments will have high ceilings and private balconies and 19 per cent of the units are proposed to be accessible.

The building occupies a prominent position in the heart of downtown Oshawa, spanning an entire city block with frontage on both King Street and Centre Street and is steps from key transit routes.

It’s all good news to Oshawa Councillor Rick Kerr, who shared the news on social media. “Onward and upward for our downtown.”