To the Editor:
As a resident of former Pilkington Township and non-Anglican, I realize that expressing my views on the proposed alteration of St. John’s Church in Elora may seem meddlesome. I also respect the desire of the parishioners of St. John’s to make the church more assessable to disabled visitors and more functional to the congregation itself. Nevertheless, I feel compelled to address not only the process that has expedited and facilitated the proposed changes, but also the implications of these procedures.
To begin with the church itself: in the mid-nineteenth century the “new medievalism,” also known as “Ecclesiologist architecture” or Gothic Revival, dominated church building in southern Ontario. St. John the Evangelist Church in Elora, with its mellow polychrome brick exterior, stands as an excellent example of this vernacular architecture, Designed by Henry Langley, architect of several other Gothic Revival churches, including Metropolitan Methodist and Jarvis Street Baptist in Toronto, St. John’s is graced with characteristic exterior features that include buttresses, vaulted arches, steeply pitched gable roofs, and elaborate cast iron ornaments. The interior is distinguished by the church’s glorious stained glass windows and traditional symbolic art.
Henry Langley put a good deal of thought into integrating the building into its surroundings. When the first plan for St. John’s revealed that the church was too large for its site, Langley modified it, shrinking its size and placing the building at “the right-angled corner at the intersection of two streets.” This, according to the architectural historian William Westfall, left “enough space along the sides of the building to expose the romantic presentation of the building materials, windows and volumes.”
Westfall’s description bears repetition: “the romantic presentation of the building materials, windows and volumes.” Fast forward to June 2012, when after a reported half an hour of discussion, Heritage Centre Wellington recommended a heritage permit that would allow significant alteration of St. John’s, listed in the Canadian Register of Historic Places and designated under the Ontario Heritage Act.
Fast forward again to November 2012, when Centre Wellington Township Council defeated a motion by two councilors to defer approval of this heritage permit, even though cognizant of the following: 1) Heritage Centre Wellington had not complied with a directive from the Ministry of Culture to update St. John’s designation by-law to ensure full protection of its heritage attributes; 2) Heritage Centre Wellington had not sought heritage planning advice on the importance of a Heritage Impact Assessment [H.I.A.] prior to the granting of the above-mentioned permit; 3) both Heritage Centre Wellington and Council ignored the comprehensive Victoria Crescent Neighbourhood Heritage Conservation District Study, with its specific recommendations for protecting the historic area in which St. John’s is in many ways the jewel in the crown.
At this November 2012 meeting, Council brushed aside the question of whether a Heritage Impact Assessment was necessary for the issuance of this permit. The Township Director of Planning was not directed to consult with the Conservation Review Board, the Architectural Conservancy of Ontario, or the City of Guelph’s heritage planner.
Upon viewing the architect’s rendering of the altered façade, I was genuinely horrified by the disregard for the structure’s verticality and distinctive architectural features. Indeed, it is perhaps no exaggeration to state that the proposed changes represent an act of architectural vandalism. I have recently learned that several members of the congregation share my feelings on the inappropriateness of these alterations and that discussion is afoot to present a new plan for the achievement of the same goals.
Whatever the outcome of these imminent deliberations, it is extremely disappointing that there has not been greater consultation with neighbours in the Victoria Park Conservation District. Clearly there needed to be further consideration by both Heritage Centre Wellington and Council of the many issues and implications surrounding the proposed alteration of one of Elora’s most cherished historic structures. Known throughout Ontario (and beyond) as the place where the Elora Festival was launched thirty-three years ago, as well as being home to the Florence Nightingale Communion Set, St. John’s is a historic treasure and needs to be respected as such.
The church is located within a municipal Heritage Area valued by the community, identified for conservation and preservation in the Township Official Plan, and protected by a number of heritage and zoning policies. Any decision pertaining to the alteration of the church must be in accordance with the above. So far, this has sadly not been the case. Why the rush?
Daniel Bratton
Centre Wellington Township
Daniel Bratton