A real house of worship in Mimico

The decision has been made; soon, the house of worship will become actual housing. No, I do not mean quirky, trendy, pricey lofts with stained-glass windows, awkward angled corners and fanciful real estate descriptions.

I mean affordable housing for seniors.

The decision was made recently by the membership of Wesley Mimico United. You know, or can guess, some of the reasons: shrinking congregation, aging building, changing neighbourhood.

Mimico? It is old Ontario; if you look closely, you can still see echoes of an earlier time. The church is a beautiful piece of its history, but it is also in need of significant and expensive repair, particularly to the foundation. Money’s tight.

As you may know, however, Mimico is being remade by an ambitious, frankly awful plan to drive condo towers like so many shiny spikes into every nook and cranny of the western waterfront.

But, with a breathtaking lack of foresight, the redevelopment of Mimico does not extend north of Lake Shore Blvd. W. in any meaningful way. That’s the wild west end. Let it pass. What to do? The hand of the church was forced. The congregation, small as it is, already takes care of the hungry and the poor; might as well house some people, rather than close up shop and sell the building to make way for more condos.

And so they will keep a portion of the church as a place of worship, and they will provide space for social services, and there will be apartments, primarily for elderly neighbourhood residents, some of whom will likely be members of the parish.

Harry Oussoren, who has just stepped down as the interim minister, will oversee the building project while the new minister, Paul Shepherd, ministers to the needs of the congregation.

Of the repurposing of the church, Harry said, “We’ve told the city. We’ve been asked to do an archeological study, and a heritage study.”

Paul said, “I think every congregation is in change; here, it’s more dramatic. The difference here is that people are talking about it openly.”

Harry said, “There will be space for the congregation, but it will be smaller. There will also be space for community partners.’’

The kicker: “There will be 35 units of housing for seniors.” That’s smart planning: the residents won’t have far to go to church, and they’ll probably be a big part of the church’s traditional Friday night community supper. Will the units be affordable? Harry said, “It will be a life-lease arrangement. You buy the right to occupy your unit. You can also sell it; it will be part of your estate. The units will be 75 to 80 per cent of market value; it’s not subsidized, but it’s modest in comparison. And it’s non-profit; the amenities won’t be glitzy.

“The units will raise (up to) $12 million; we’re also applying for all the grants.”

The hope is that they will be able to raise enough money for repairs to the foundation and the roof, and to build the apartments, while leaving the exterior of the church largely untouched. When will it be done? Harry, like all good clergymen, is an optimist. “We’re hoping for 2014 or 2015. All the studies, the partnerships to develop, the funding beyond that raised by the sale of the units — we have a long way to go, but we’re on a track that has been run before.”

Not always so thoughtfully. Joe Fiorito appears Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Email: jfiorito@thestar.ca