The former McKenzie Seeds buildings in downtown Brandon is going to be redeveloped into residential and commercial business space.

Phase one of the project will see the five-storey building converted into 40 two and three-bedroom apartment units, with the main floor of the building being converted into 25-hundred square feet of commercial space.

“This innovative project will add to the vibrancy of downtown Brandon, preserving an iconic heritage building and transforming it into exciting space for homes and businesses,” said Municipal Government Minister Drew Caldwell. “This will bring more people, more business and more economic opportunity to downtown Brandon, the heart of this bustling city.”

Photo courtesy McKenzie Seeds

The project will be supported by $2.2 million in provincial tax increment financing and $1.8 million in municipal tax increment financing.

Brandon's downtown development agency, Renaissance Brandon, will also give the project a $950,000 dollar grant.

Phase two of the project, slated to begin in the summer of 2016, will turn the additional six floors into an additional 45 residential units.

“I am extremely excited that the McKenzie project is proceeding. This is the product of a lot of hard work and perseverance on the part of the developers, the province, Renaissance Brandon and the city,” said Mayor Rick Chrest, City of Brandon. “It is a significant turning point toward the revitalization of our downtown.”

The former McKenzie Seeds buildings served as a seed production and distribution centre between 1910 and 1994, when it housed a mail order catalogue company.

The building has been vacant since 2008.