One of Ottawa's oldest elementary school buildings is closing after the local public school board learned it needs $7 million in renovations.

The Ottawa-Carleton district school board decided at its board meeting Tuesday that Grant Alternative School, which has been at a building on Richmond Road since the early 1920s, will be shut down in June.

Acting school board chair Greg Law said there were two main reasons for the closure: "The age and the condition of the facility at Grant, and the declining enrolment situation."

The board faces a $27-million budget shortfall and will decide in February whether it will also close Bayview Public School on Riverside Drive near Hunt Club Road.

Law said each school closure will only save $200,000 per year in the short-term, but will leave the board with fewer buildings to maintain in the long-term and ensure that there are enough children per grade at each school.

When Grant closes, its 138 junior kindergarten to Grade 6 students will be transferred to Christie Public School, which will take over Grant's alternative program.

Its alternative practices include "student-directed" learning, interaction among children of different age groups and student self-evaluation.

The 114 students at Christie Public School will be transferred to the nearby Pinecrest or Leslie Park schools if they do not want to participate in the alternative program.