Elmira church plans to convert space into housing for community

Elmira church ready for next chapter An Elmira church has big plans for its new building. Jeff Pickel has the details.

More supportive housing could be coming to Elmira, Ont. thanks to a local church that plans to convert their space into apartments for those struggling to secure housing in the community.

Trinity United Church said it’s a plan they believe meets their mission of helping out the community.

“We decided the church space is getting rather large, getting expensive to upkeep and congregations getting a bit smaller,” said Randy Warren, the church’s leadership team chair. “So we thought, well, this would be a good way to also give back to the community and making apartments available for people that, you know, wanted to downsize or young people starting out having the option of a nice apartment.”

Trinity United plans to level the current building and replace it with a six-storey building.

Planning began over ten years ago. Zoning approval from Woolwich Township allows a six-storey building with five floors of apartments, including church space which will be located on the first floor. The sixth floor, meanwhile, will be a recreation area accessible to the church.

In the spring of 2023, the size of the development was increased from 40 units to 53 units of studio and one to three-bedroom units.

The Mayor of Woolwich supports the plan.

“It's a grassroots organization that's come together from people from the community, so it truly is a community development,” said Mayor Sandy Shantz.

She believes projects like this will help young and old residents remain in Elmira.

“We really do need some housing for seniors, for example, who want to downsize, but still want to have a place in town and stay local,” she said.

Trinity United isn’t the first local church to add housing.

St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Waterloo completed a similar model. Both St. Mark’s Lutheran Church and St. Peter’s Church in downtown Kitchener are adding supportive housing on their properties. Meantime, All Saints Anglican Church in north Waterloo sold their property to a developer to create condo units. The church used the money from the sale to create a new community centre.

“So I think what we're trying to get across is there's a huge need for this housing in Elmira,” Warren said. “I know three individuals there, seniors who had to downsize and they've all ended up moving to Waterloo because they couldn't find anything in Elmira. So, not good for the community.”

According to Trinity United, this is the best way to help neighbours in need during a housing crisis.

“You're much better off if you have a roof over your head…so it's trying to just create that safe environment for people.”

A public consultation will be held Tuesday at 7 p.m. in Woolwich Township Council Chambers. If all goes according to plan, demolition will begin in the spring of 2025 and building will start later that year.