The Queens Avenue United Church is having a special meeting in October to consider closing down the church.
In a letter written on August 18 to members and friends of the church, they were informed by the church board that some “difficult news” would emanate from its August 10 meeting.
During the meeting, the board of directors recommended that the church halt a previously proposed development plan. It was also recommended that the church be closed in January 2023.
The board got correspondence from the United Church of Canada’s Pacific Mountain Regional Council revealing that the property rehabilitation project that the Queens Avenue United Church planned to commence in July 2023 has been put on hold indefinitely.
The correspondence states: “Circumstances have changed multiple times — the current economic uncertainty, rising interest and inflation rates, rising construction costs and supply chain issues mean the project is not currently economically feasible.
“At this time the project timeline is uncertain and we cannot confirm a project start date as we anticipate significant delays in the process during these uncertain times.”
An application by the United Property Resource Corporation for preliminary application review for an OCP Amendment, Heritage Revitalization Agreement, Rezoning and Development Permit for 529 Queens Avenue was reviewed by The City of New Westminster Land Use and Planning Committee in June 2021.
During the meeting, the committee got a “director’s memo” on the preliminary consideration of the application, as staff said the12-story residential tower that was proposed was “far above what is expected in the OCP.”
The applicant proposed to erect a 12-storey residential building which would be 100% leased, with 31% being below market rents and the remainder being market rents. Also, the plan included retaining and restoring the church’s sanctuary, and space for a new non-profit child care facility with around 79 seats and a small commercial space like a coffee shop.
During the meeting, staff detected that the two daycares operating in the building had been informed their leases would not be renewed when it ends in June 2022. Though, the church later wanted to extend the daycare’s leases, one, Queens Avenue Daycare, was closed down in June.
The recent letter highlighted the financial challenges facing the church.
The letter said: “Furthermore, because there is no specific project for which a $100,000 loan to support the ministry’s work can be secured through the end of June, the offer to lend working capital is no longer available to the Queens Avenue United Church. At the same meeting, the Board also received new financial projections based on current trends and we recognize that we will need a cash injection of $200,000 to fund our ministry through the end of June 2023; twice as much as we had previously forecast.”
The Board of Directors has called an extraordinary general meeting of the Queens Avenue United Church for Sunday, October 2nd. The aim of the meeting is to consider a motion to disband as a municipality and stop operations on January 31, 2023.
The letter read: “After analyzing all information to date, the Board believes that the church has exhausted its human and financial resources to continue its ministry.”
The church held its first service on the Fraser River on April 3, 1859. The service was conducted by Methodist minister Reverend Edward White.
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