Posted Feb 13, 2013, 1:37 AM
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More detail on the repurposing. Just don't hold your breath in hopes that mature trees will return to James and Jackson.
Developer eyes new life for James Street church
(Hamilton Spectator, Meredith MacLeod, Feb 12 2013)
A Toronto developer who bought the historic but ailing James Street Baptist Church will reveal “dramatic” preliminary plans for the property in a few weeks, according to the Hamilton architect working on the project.
“The intention is to take some bold steps,” said Drew Hauser of McCallum Sather Architects.
“To make a redevelopment like that possible we will for sure be asking for more density on the site. We would like to build out to the lot lines.”
Preliminary plans include multi-unit residential, some commercial and potentially a boutique hotel, says Hauser. City officials have been “very receptive” during early talks, he says.
The developer isn’t ready to go public yet, but Hauser says he has completed heritage conversions in Toronto. It’s the developer’s first project in Hamilton.
“They bought the site because they thought the building was so inspiring,” he said.
“The developer values the cultural heritage and significance of the building. We will be working hard to reinvent it.”
Listing agent Maggie Steele said the buyer is enthusiastic about the economic and cultural revival of Hamilton.
“He would like the building to be part of the Supercrawl and art crawl events and connect the two parts of James Street.”
Worship pastor Christopher Clause says the congregation is relieved the church will find new life.
“They sold the building for less and did that in order to bless our community again. This developer seems like the right one for the city and this building.”
An immediate concern is serious structural problems on the building’s north wall, says Hauser. Other areas will require stabilization as well.
“This is a challenging site but it’s very exciting to try to reinvent its purpose,” he said, stressing that will mean blending the heritage with modern components.
The Gothic Revival church at the corner of James and Jackson streets was built between 1878 and 1882 and carries an Ontario Heritage Act designation. Hamilton’s Heritage, a city document, says this about the building: “Unique among Hamilton churches, the James Street church is particularly distinguished for its use of rock-faced masonry walls, dominant corner tower and heavily buttressed facades.”
The original features of the exterior facade are protected by heritage designation, including the slate roof, masonry walls and detailing, all windows and door openings.
The church had been the oldest surviving Baptist church in Hamilton. But the repair demands had been too much for the congregation, which listed the building last summer at $1.1 million.
“The upkeep was more than we could ethically stomach,” said Pastor Don Berry-Graham. “We would be pouring millions into the building when there are people who are hungry. We couldn’t justify that.”
He said the buyer has a “proven track record” and the project could be “something very special on that corner.”
Alissa Denham-Robinson, chair of the Hamilton Municipal Heritage Committee, is also happy about the purchase.
“It’s exciting that it could have some future. We’re very happy to hear it’s a developer who is interested in preserving the history of it.”
Along with any site plan approval or building permits, the project will have to go through a heritage permit process, Denham-Robinson said.
The congregation and staff moved out of the church about four weeks ago. Services have been held at Centenary United downtown and most recently at The Phoenix at McMaster University. The focus is to find a suitable space downtown to continue the church’s outreach programs with the homeless, the poor, at-risk youth and others in need, says Berry-Graham.
Both Clause and Berry-Graham said they hope city officials will work with the developer to find practical solutions to preserve heritage while allowing new uses.
“We’re praying the city will allow flexibility,” said Clause. “Otherwise, (the church) will fall down and be of no use to anyone.”
Steele said there was plenty of interest in the building. People she showed the building to talked about restaurants and nightclubs, even a circus school.
But many potential buyers were scared off by the heritage designation or the necessary repair work, said Steele, a realtor with Halton Heritage Realty. A building condition report before it was listed said the structure needs $2 million to $3 million worth of work.
Shortly after showing the building, Steele received an email saying it was unsafe to go into the northwest tower. She said the congregation then made the decision to vacate.
She says the deal is a win all around.
“It saves the building. It saves the congregation and it saves the city from owning a church that is falling down.”
The city already owns the boarded-up St. Mark’s on Bay Street South. It was bought in 1994 after a developer applied for a permit to demolish the then-126-year-old church to build a highrise.
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"Where architectural imagination is absent, the case is hopeless." - Louis Sullivan
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