Kingston’s infamous former maximum-security prison may soon be used for housing.
First opened in 1835, Kingston Penitentiary had a 178-year-long history in the city as a federal prison housing inmates until its eventual closure in 2013. While the institution was turned into the Canada Penitentiary Museum, which began operations in 1985, the land may soon be up for sale for the purpose of improving housing shortages in Kingston.
In a federal announcement on Jan. 30, Minister of Public Services and Procurement, Jean-Yves Duclos, announced the addition of six new properties to the Canada Public Land Bank including Kingston Penitentiary. Consisting of federal properties that can potentially be used to build housing units, the bank now lists the former prison as “open for .”
Launched in August 2024, the Canada Public Land Bank is a key part of the federal Public Lands for Homes Plan, designed to transform surplus and underutilized public lands into affordable housing solutions. Since its launch, 90 federal properties spanning 473 hectares of land have been identified across Canada.
“Wherever possible, the government will turn these properties into housing through a long-term lease, to affordable housing and ensure public land stays public,” a press release from the Government of Canada that same day specified.
In an interview with The Journal, Kingston Mayor Bryan Paterson explained how other federal properties could better serve Kingston’s housing needs, but didn’t expand on which specific properties could be looked at instead.
“I think Kingston Penitentiary is probably one of the most difficult, complex, [and] potentially problematic, federal properties we would have for housing just because it’s fulfilling so many other important roles,” Paterson said.
Paterson also expanded specifically on why the proposal could be problematic and which economic areas this sale could disrupt.
“The biggest concern is that Kingston Penitentiary plays a critical role for our tourism and film industries here in the city, and so we want to make sure that any plans they have for housing wouldn’t interfere with what we figure are really big economic engines for the community,” Paterson said.
It’s currently unclear if the property will be leased by the private or public sector. Despite the uncertainties, residents of Kingston are opposed to it being owned by a private company.
Kingstonian and Queen’s student Logan B., MD ’25, spoke with The Journal in an interview about his perspective on the changes, citing his concerns if the project is adopted by a private company.
“I think housing is a really critical issue here but giving it to corporations that don’t have a tie to the community worries me. I think I’d have to hear some sort of assurance from whoever’s purchasing this land that they’re going to be tied to what the community wants and make it affordable for people who live here and the students that study just down the road,” Logan said.
Echoing the same sentiment, Kingston local and assistant French Studies professor Julien Lefort-Favreau explained the importance of creating more public housing with the property.
While the future of the prison remains uncertain, Kingstonians remain steadfast in their view that it can’t be sold to a private company.
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