The Built Heritage Committee today approved an application to alter the former St. Brigid’s Church(link is external) at 310 St. Patrick Street, reflecting the building’s evolution as an event space.
The owners have applied to remove the pews from the nave of the church. The pews are fixed in place and not accessible, and the proposal is to replace them with hardwood flooring. Some of the pews will be moved to the basement for use in the pub and multipurpose room while the remainder will be labelled and stored off site while plans are made to repurpose them.
Originally, the church served as the parish for the Irish Catholic working class of Lowertown. When the building was first designated in 1981, the adaptive re-use of the building had been limited by the specific language used for the interior designation, which essentially restricts the space to being used as a place of worship. The interior was added to the designation to recognize its vaulted ceilings, polychromed walls, carved woodwork, pews, organ, altar and stained-glass windows.
The Committee received a report regarding a Heritage Community Improvement Plan Grant Program application for 70 Richmond Road(link is external). The grant, which will not exceed $500,000, would allow the site to be redeveloped, adding 103 residential units. The alteration would include the on-site relocation and rehabilitation of the former Champlain Oil Company Service Station and its integration into a proposed nine-storey, mixed-use building with ground-floor retail and two levels of underground parking. While the project involves the temporary relocation of the historic building and repositioning at the front of the property, it will be retained through this redevelopment.
The Committee approved designating 8 Robert Kemp Street(link is external) under Part IV of the Ontario Heritage Act. The property meets six of nine criteria for designation. The house, on a corner lot in the Kempark subdivision, was originally built in 1958 for the Central Canada Exhibition (CCE) home lottery at Lansdowne Park. The house was the grand prize at the 1958 fair and was built for display before being moved to its permanent location. Kempark boasts five other CCE lottery homes that were built at Lansdowne Park and then relocated.
The Committee approved the designation of two historic red brick downtown churches at 152 Metcalfe Street(link is external) and 249 Bronson Avenue(link is external). The property at 152 Metcalfe Street, constructed in 1880 and currently known as St. Peter and St. Paul’s Anglican Church, meets seven of nine criteria. The McPhail Memorial Baptist Church, at 249 Bronson Avenue, was constructed in 1893 and meets five of nine criteria for designation.
Items from today’s meeting will rise to Council on Wednesday, November 27, with the exception of the report on 70 Richmond Road, which will rise on Wednesday, November 13.
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