When a proposed development that would tear down the former Zion Presbyterian Church in Angus was first presented to Essa Township council for consideration in 2020, hundreds of local residents opposed the idea.
They wanted the church preserved and used for the community.
When a revised version of that development proposal — with the church remaining, but repurposed for affordable housing — was presented Wednesday night in a special public meeting at the Essa Township Administration Centre, there were less than a dozen folks in the chambers and none of them opposed the plan.
The man making the presentation, Greg Barker, a partner at Innovative Planning Solutions, the firm hired by landowner Wynstar Developments to develop the project, seemed surprised by the low attendance, given the previous heightened public interest.
He said there may have been a number of factors that contributed to the low turnout last night.
“First, we tried to address the concerns we heard at the first public meeting,” Barker said. “The church will be left standing and it’s going to be repurposed.”
Additionally, he said, there was a staff report in December 2023 that was recommending council approval of the applications.
“Maybe that was it,” Barker added.
With no opposition to the new plan, township staff will prepare another report for council to approve or deny the applications based, in part, on the input gathered from Wednesday night’s meeting.
Barker said he's optimistic, considering staff recommended council approve it in December.
Wynstar Developments purchased two lots on Margaret Street in Angus in 2019.
One of those lots, located at 14 Margaret St., is zoned institutional and is home to the former Zion Presbyterian Church, which was built in 1868.
The other lot, located at 18 Margaret, is zoned low-density residential and is vacant. The small shed that used to sit on the property has been demolished, a victim of vandalism.
For the proposal to proceed, both lots need to be rezoned as residential medium-density townhouses with special provisions zone. The Official Plan amendment would redesignate the properties from institutional to multiple residential.
The original plan was to build 26 townhouse units and remove the church.
A group called We The People of Essa challenged the proposal, claiming the church is a significant part of the village's heritage. They presented a petition, with almost 800 signatures, in opposition of the development.
However, the church has never been designated a heritage building.
The lack of a heritage designation presents a challenge for the township. If the municipality were to deny the proposed development based on the cultural significance of the church, the developer would have grounds to appeal, because the church is not recognized as being historically significant by the province.
The province identifies parameters in the Ontario Heritage Act for the protection of properties with cultural heritage value. The purpose is to have built, natural and cultural heritage features identified and protected when listed by the municipality.
“The challenge with that piece ... is the township would have to list or designate this church in order for it to be protected by the province to safeguard it against demolition,” Aimee Powell, Essa Township’s manager of planning and development at the time, told BarrieToday in December 2020. “That was not done. So the church, although it has heritage value among community members, it is not recognized by the province as being protected.”
The developer has since made changes to the application to address the comments and concerns that were shared at the Dec. 16, 2020 public meeting and is now proposing 37 residential units. This includes the preservation and repurposing of the existing church for residential use.
The development would feature 30 back-to-back townhomes, a single access route from Margaret Street onto a private internal road, an outdoor common amenity area and 70 parking spaces, which is 10 more than are required.
Additionally, the applicant is proposing a partnership with Habitat for Humanity Huronia.
According to Barker, the development will include seven units earmarked for Habitat for Humanity Huronia.
“If council approves this application, our next step will be to sever the lots for the Habitat for Humanity units,” he said.
Habitat for Humanity has provided Wynstar Developments with a letter of intent stating that, once the Official Plan amendment, zoning-bylaw amendment and consents have been passed and take effect, the non-profit organization will purchase the properties and develop the lots themselves by "repurposing and revitalizing" the former church.
— With files from Jessica Owen
