A Kelowna church that was built in the 1930’s will be getting a makeover fit for a heritage building.
St. Aidan’s Anglican Church was built in 1933 and is located on the corner of 365 Rutland Road N. The church is a one-storey building and in 1958 the front vestibule was relocated and reused as the Lych Gate.
In 1990 the City of Kelowna purchased the church when it was deconsecrated, which is the act of removing a religious blessing from something consecrated by a minister or priest. Currently the old church is sitting boarded up and the City of Kelowna would like to change that.
In 2009, St. Aidan’s Church was identified as a high priority for conservation work through the City of Kelowna Heritage Asset Management Strategy. A request was sent out in 2012 to see what organizations would be interested in the building and the Okanagan Buddhist Cultural Society (OBCS) said they would be.
A Memorandum of Understanding was signed based on the premise that The City of Kelowna would sell the land to the OBCS.
The Society is proposing to conserve the existing building and to add an additional building. The addition to the existing building will include a new entry on the north side of the chancel, a church hall and cultural centre on the south side of the chancel.
A parking lot and a Friendship Garden have also been proposed for the northwest corner.
The proposal was brought forward during the Monday afternoon City of Kelowna council meeting. The proposal consists of three parcels which will be brought together. The first parcel of land at 135 Mugford Road was purchased by City of Kelowna in 1992, the second parcel at 345 Rutland Road was purchased in 2004 and the third is the parcel of land which the Church is located on.
OBCS is planning for the property to become a cultural centre, which will help bond the Rutland neighbourhood of Kelowna. The building will be available to rent and be used by multiple different agencies and organizations.
