Ontario, Quebec take lead

Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 26/12/2010 (5403 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

When it comes to historic- church preservation, Quebec is the gold standard. The Conseil du Patrimoine religieux du Quebec, the body responsible for historic churches, provides $20 million each year for as many as 100 restoration projects.

But Quebec is unusual. The high level of support is due partly to how the Roman Catholic Church is deeply entwined with the province’s history, but also to how rapidly Quebecers abandoned that church. The dramatic fall in attendance put many churches at risk at the same time — about 20 churches in Quebec are closed every year.

A better model to follow is the Province of Ontario’s, which has created a program called Ontario Places of Worship.

The goal of the program is to develop a list of all places of worship 25 years old or older and to provide information about preservation and re-use.

To date, the program has listed 8,000 places of worship belonging to 90 different groups, ranging from pioneer chapels to downtown cathedrals.

This inventory is “a starting point for discussion about what to do about buildings,” says Sean Fraser, heritage trust manager of acquisitions and conservation services. The goal, he says, is to “act as a clearinghouse, to provide expertise, advice, connections and information about sources of funding.”

“We don’t always have the answers,” he says, “but we can help find the answers.”

In addition to providing information on buildings and faith communities in the province, the Places of Worship website offers information on architects who specialize in adapting or preserving old places of worship, the impact of church buildings in communities and stories of successful re-use — things like condos, libraries, dance, yoga and martial arts studios, restaurants, pubs and performing arts centres.

For Fraser, preserving old worship places is important not just for congregations, but for the communities they’re in.

“There’s an emotional connection,” he says. “These are places where people grew up, got married, buried their loved ones. It’s part of who they are.”

One of the myths he’s eager to dispel is that the old churches are so old they’re not worth saving.

“They were built with old-growth lumber,” he says. “It’s as strong as the strongest lumber available today. Many were built very well and built to last.”

The Ontario Places of Worship website is www.heritagetrust.on.ca/placesofworship