After 60 years as a fixture in the community, Zion United Church in north Regina is closing its doors.
But while the historic church has a date with the wrecking ball, parts will be resurrected. Pews will be repurposed by other churches and Habitat for Humanity will make use of extra tables and chairs.
“It’s kind of sad (when) you come in and you see all the stuff gone,” said the church’s treasurer Norman Lambert.
The owner of the adjacent Regina Lutheran Home, Eden Care Communities, has purchased the aging church.
It wants to replace both the church and care home with a new facility called Eden Village, which would include 300 long-term care beds in two buildings.
The plans include space for affordable housing, and space for retail, a daycare, pharmacy and, potentially, an elementary school.
“The first phase of course would be to build something that the folks, our elders that are here, could actually move into,” said Eden Care Communities CEO Alan Stephen.
“Once that happened, then we would demolish this building and then build a new facility here.”
The goal is to move current residents into the new facility by 2017 and to demolish and replace the old care home by 2019.
Based on a report by CTV Regina’s Morgan Campbell
