My fellow parishioners,
Thank you for your patience as we continue our work to realize a parish hall. I am excited to announce an opportunity, the importance of which is hard to underestimate; I hope that you will consider and pray about it in the coming weeks and join us for a detailed presentation on Sunday August 11th.
When the parish moved to St. Anne’s, we were permitted to keep the proceeds of 87 Mann Avenue to help fund the construction of a parish hall. Every possible location on our property in relation to the current rectory has been considered. Due to the space constraints on the east side where the garage sits, any hall would have to be on the west, necessitating either the demolition or relocation of the current rectory. When this became apparent, the parish took advantage of an opportunity to purchase 566 Old St. Patrick with the view of making it our new rectory. This opportunity gave flexibility to propose several designs for a hall; your feedback was incorporated into what we, only a few months ago, brought together into a final plan to present to the parish: to construct a hall on the west side that attempted to replicate some of the historical and aesthetic qualities of our beautiful church.
After completing a novena to St. Joseph and a few days before we were to present the latest plans to the parish, the Lord in His providence presented an opportunity that no one could have expected, the chance to purchase the former rectory of St. Anne’s, located immediately behind the church. This incredible 11,000 square foot building was built in 1921 and overseen by Monsignor Myrand, the faithful Pastor of St. Anne’s for 46 years; he is buried below the west transept and surely continuing to pray for the parish that rescued, and is hoping to restore, his beautiful church.
Although the initial idea was daunting, that same providence has removed obstacles one by one, leaving us with an undeniably better prospect. What we propose for your consideration is the purchase of the old St. Anne rectory to serve as offices/bookstore for the parish and to retrofit the upper levels of the building to serve as a beautiful church hall. We have a conditional offer to purchase the property pending a parish meeting on August 11th to answer your questions. Some of the main considerations are outlined below.
17 Myrand Avenue (behind the church)
The Need for a Hall
A healthy, growing parish needs a hall, a regular centre of activity outside of Mass where we can grow in community, get to know each other (and new comers) better, and host parish events, such as weekly Sunday coffee, potlucks, conferences, receptions, dinners, and plays, that bring us all together in the faith. I believe this is important, particularly because of the lack of good Catholic social opportunities. As one of the most vibrant parishes in the city, we can do better than pitching a tent on the lawn in good weather or huddling outside in the cold before many parishioners begin their long commute home.
Current State of the Building
The rectory is one of the grandest examples of ecclesiastical residences in the city. The ground floor and part of the second are composed of formal rooms and offices boasting all their original woodwork, fireplaces, molding and chandeliers. The high degree of craftsmanship and careful maintenance have preserved the fabric of the building; a professional engineering inspection confirms it is in good condition. The formal rooms are designated Heritage by the City and they will remain unchanged. Most of the second and third floors are bedrooms and bathrooms.
The Proposal
The exterior will remain unchanged, as will rooms with heritage features which will be used as offices, meeting rooms and bookstore. The walls separating the numerous bedrooms and bathrooms on the second and third floors will be removed, as will a portion of the floor between them, creating a large, double-height hall with lots of natural light, big enough to meet our needs and complete with a professional grade kitchen. City of Ottawa Heritage is supportive of our proposed concept. Renovation plans are being prepared for our Aug. 11th meeting. Those plans will allow parishioners to visualize the proposed concept.
Sale of 566 Old St. Patrick
This opportunity means that we no longer require 566 Old St. Patrick as a home for the priests and will be able to keep our current rectory. The Archdiocese has advised that conditional upon parish support they will purchase and operate the apartment building at 566 Old St. Patrick. Thanks to the initial purchase of that property at a reasonable price and subsequent improvements made to the building, our parish will realize a profit in excess of $250,000 on its sale to the Archdiocese.
566 Old St. Patrick
Timing
The conditional offer to purchase the NHP is scheduled to close September 30, 2019. Subject to receiving your support and getting the appropriate building permits from the City of Ottawa, renovations to the NHP could commence shortly after its purchase. This would allow us to realize a parish hall much faster than building from scratch.
Advantages
After much consideration we feel that this option would be more affordable than constructing something new, allow us to realize a hall very quickly, prevent the demolition of the current rectory, preserve green space on church property and reunite two beautiful buildings that were built by our faithful Catholic forebears. The Archdiocese is confident and supportive of our plans and will assist with their financing. A fully detailed budget will be presented at our August 11th meeting.
At this time, I would ask you to prayerfully consider this opportunity. Thank you for your patience in the coming weeks as we finalize the details and design, all of which will be presented to you for your consideration and feedback.
In Christo,
Fr. Erik Deprey, FSSP
Pastor