ST. JOHN’S United Church in Vancouver’s West End has been put up for sale by the B.C. Conference of the United Church of Canada.

The site consists of two lots at the corner of Broughton and Comox Streets, in the midst of a densely populated area with very few churches.

The original building burned down in 1974 and was replaced by the current 13,000-square-foot building in 1981. However, due to dwindling attendance, the congregation closed down earlier this year.

The current RM-5 zoning allows for the lot to be developed for residential housing. It could also be used for social housing, a community centre, a park, a daycare, a library, a care facility – or a church.

Because the area is predominantly devoted to medium to high-density residential uses, it will be attractive to developers. However, the prospectus for the building says, “Given the history of this property as a place of worship as well as a centre for various social services and related community organizations, preference will be given to purchasers who are prepared to preserve the legacy of the St. John’s mission in Vancouver’s West End and provide benefit to the local community.” The asking price is $4.495 million.

Renfrew United Church, at 2855 East 1st Avenue in east Vancouver, has also been up for sale, for $2.25 million.

At press time, realtor Mark Lester indicated there was a firm deal for the sale of Renfrew Church and a conditional sale for St. John’s.

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East Burnaby United Church closed in 2008, but the Conference has not yet decided what to do with that property.

Two other United Church properties have recently been transferred to ethnic United churches – St. Paul’s United Church in Burnaby to Korean United Church, and Oak Avenue United Church in Surrey, which closed in June 2007, to the Taiwanese congregation, Amazing Grace United Church.             – Jim Coggins

June 2009