Owner of former church in Stoney Point seeking to demolish heritage building

A historical church in Stoney Point could soon meet the wrecking ball as council mulls a report pointing to structural issues that pose a safety risk.

The report goes before Lakeshore council Tuesday evening, recommending the municipality approve demolition of the Church of the Annunciation on Tecumseh Road, while trying to save some of the features within the building.

Built in 1906, the former church sits on the main thoroughfare in Stoney Point and for years, was considered the hub of the town.

David Sylvestre has fond memories of the church, including sitting with his grandmother while she played the organ for a half-century.

“Oh, yeah, those memories will be there forever,” he said, admitting the memories are more about the people he was with than the building itself.

The diocese closed the church in 2006 and amalgamated numerous congregations into a new church at a different location.

The building was designated on the heritage registry in 2007. Since then, the former church has largely sat empty, falling into disrepair.

A private owner bought the building in the last few years and previously sought a demolition permit in 2020, which has now expired. He is once again seeking a demolition permit.

“As I understand, it was his intention to maintain the outer appearance. But it proved to be impossible once again with the engineering studies,” said Larissa Vogler, the ward 6 councillor for the municipality of Lakeshore.

In a recent tour of the building, she witnessed a flooded basement with mold everywhere and some foundation shifting.

She points to a structural engineer’s report going before council Tuesday that calls the former church “a danger of the public safety and well-being.”

“Someone is going to get hurt, and this is a small community, it's going to be someone we know. And God forbid it's a child,” said Vogler. “So it's a very difficult decision. It's heartbreaking.”

A number of former parishioners agreed it’s time for it to come down.

“I'm sorry it would have to come down but it's an eyesore for Stoney Point,” said Nancy Sylvestre. “We want to beautify our our town now as much as we can.”

“This is something that's going to at least move us forward to change the look of our town and provide housing that's badly needed in our community,” said David Larue.

But there’s also a group of people committed to saving the sanctuary, including David Tremblay.

“It was the heart of the community,” he told CTV News Monday. “I was baptized there, married there and my great-grandfather helped build it.”

Tremblay said the town never enforced the up-keep of the building or the property and allowed it to fall into the state it’s in today. He’d like to see the matter deferred.

“There’s been no public consultation. You can’t just make decisions,” Tremblay said. “There’s an act to follow and let’s follow it.”

Coun. Vogler notes the municipality has an obligation to consider public safety and now’s the time to act.

“We can't worry about what's happened. Up until now we have to look at where we are today. And the choice that's in front of us,” Vogler said.

Even if council approves the demolition, Vogler said the heritage committee has identified a number of items within the building that are salvageable before it gets knocked down.

”That will again, for the future, maintain some of this rich history that we can use perhaps in some other application for the future, whether it's in park or another building or what have you,” she said.

Council will look to make a final decision Tuesday night.