Two historic buildings on the Belvedere orphanage property have been given a nine-month reprieve from the bulldozers.

    During that time, Myles-Leger Ltd., which bought the site, will seek a commercial use for the buildings, said
    vice-president Bill Clarke.

    Clarke and his brother Randy, president of the company, paid $500,000 for the 7.5-acre property in a deal that closed
    Wednesday. The property, off Bonaventure and Newtown Roads in St. John’s is bordered by Brother Rice junior high,
    Holy Heart of Mary senior high and Macpherson elementary - and a graveyard, Belvedere Cemetery.

    City council had already given a demolition permit to the Sisters of Mercy to raze the two-storey St. Michael’s
    Convent, which is more than 170 years old, and the four-storey orphanage, built in 1885.

    But Clarke said Wednesday his company will consult with heritage groups and others to try to find a
    way to save the buildings, which have stirred public interest in recent months.

    But at the end of nine months, if there’s no solution, the buildings go.

    “We’re in the business of developing real estate so, for us, it has to be economically viable. We’re
    not a charity group, we’re not government.”

    Clarke said they’ll meet with the different levels of government and saving the buildings might need
    tax relief, grants or a contract for government office space.

    The convent, built in 1826-27 by lawyer and politician Hugh Alexander Emerson, is the third-oldest
    structure in the city. It was sold in 1847 to Bishop Michael Fleming as accommodation for the
    Franciscans and it is where he died in 1850. The sisters acquired it in 1859.

    The Belvedere Orphanage was built in 1885 and is said to be one of the finest masonry examples of
    the Second Empire style in the province.

    The Clarke brothers are now submitting a revised application to the city, seeking the land to be
    rezoned from institutional to a mix of commercial and residential R3 development. The plan calls for
    40 townhouses in sets of four attached units with a cul de sac entrance off Newtown Road. If the
    convent and orphanage remain standing, they would be used for the commercial part of the
    development.

    The Clarkes hope to start construction on the townhouses this spring.

    This is their latest revision to the Belvedere proposal and they will go back to the drawing board if it’s
    not approved by the planning committee.

    The committee chairwoman, Deputy Mayor Marie White, had not seen the Clarkes’ new plan
    Wednesday, but she was glad to hear demolition has been delayed.

    “That’s excellent news,” she said.

    Last fall, the Clarkes planned a $12-million, upscale 114-townhouse subdivision, which the city nixed
    because it was one oversized cul de sac with a single entrance from Newtown Road.

    Earlier this year, they proposed a 97-home subdivision with an entrance on Bonaventure Avenue as
    well. That didn’t work either and the Clarkes raised concerns that the committee was turning down
    their applications for the sake of the historic buildings.

    But the planning committee insisted it still had concerns, including the potential traffic and parking
    problems, and hassles to the homeowners related to three nearby schools.

    And the Avalon East School Board raised objections because an underground steam tunnel runs
    through the property from Holy Heart to heat Brother Rice. If the historic buildings remain, the
    developers say, the steam tunnel would not be affected.

    There were also concerns about access to the back of the schools and the loss of the “free space”
    traditionally used by students.

    The Clarkes have since met with the school board and are trying to work out the problems. One
    possibility would be a small open space for the students.

    The Sisters of Mercy were anxious to sell because the vacant buildings cost them $50,000 in upkeep
    and security last year.

    If they had kept the buildings, it would cost about $30,000 this year, said Sister Charlotte Fitzpatrick,
    superior general.

    She said the sisters have an emotional attachment to the property, but they are not going to maintain
    the buildings for the sake of keeping them up.

    There were only three sisters in residence when the convent closed in May 1999 because vandalism
    and people hanging around the property made them anxious about living there. In the 1950s and ’60s,
    12 to 18 sisters lived there.

    “We would have loved the Heritage Society, the university, the city or government to purchase the
    property to do whatever was needed. We could not afford to do that,” Fitzpatrick said.

    The Sisters of Mercy say they’re using the funds from the sale to start a trust fund to continue their
    mission by supporting initiatives of women who once lived in the orphanage. Details are expected in
    the fall.

    Fitzpatrick said none of the order’s other properties are for sale and she doesn’t expect any change
    in that stand for some time.

• Also read: A Brief History of Belvedere Convent and Orphanage, by Shane O'Dea; or
• No Heritage Designation for Belvedere, by Barb Sweet, The Telegram;
• and check out A Photo Record of Belvedere Convent and Orphanage