Saint John's historic Stone Church hall to be demolished
CBC News Posted: Nov 19, 2015 12:15 PM AT
The congregation of Saint John's historic Stone Church will have to demolish its architecturally significant church hall wing, Reverend John Paul Westin confirmed on Thursday.
The noteworthy 'L' wing, situated next to the back of the church on 87 Carleton St., will have to be torn down over the next few weeks.
The small congregation of approximately 80 church members is unable to pay the more than $2 million required to fix leaks and deal with mould and other issues in the hall.
"We looked into the possibility of renovating the hall and repairing it, and the price was just exorbitant for our congregation," said Westin.
"There's financial challenges for us, and we want to stay and be able to minister in the community, so it's been a long process of a number of years trying to discern what we think the right thing to do is."
Westin says they will concentrate on fixing up what is well regarded as the first stone church built in the city.
"Our church building is a national historic site. And something that's been part of the city of Saint John," he said.
"We felt that the church building was more important to save than the hall."
'It's a loss'
Saint John's Stone Church was completed in 1825 and was named a national historic site in 1987.
The church hall wing, which resembles the church, was added in the 1890s. It is not designated or protected in any way, however, and was remodeled a few times over the years
Robert Boyce, chair of the city's heritage development board hopes the stone facade can be saved.
From CBC News