As you are aware, the General Assembly voted on September 27, 2020 to give the Congregational Council the mandate to seek buyers for the property. This difficult, but rational decision was taken because the upkeep of the church building is so costly that our dwindling congregation is unable to cover these expenses. The sale of our building is necessary for us to continue as an active congregation.

Following the vote in September 2020, the Congregational Council has consulted with a real estate specialist. The result of these consultations is that four developers have shown serious interest in our property. We have also entered into discussions with other congregations regarding the potential sale of the church property.

We have learned through this process that our entire site is deemed a cemetery because of the columbarium that holds the urns of our deceased members. This makes the property impossible to sell. Therefore, before we can begin any firm discussions with the interested developers or other congregations, we must first receive consent from the provincial authorities to close the columbarium.

Even in the absence of the potential sale of the property, the location of the columbarium is no longer a peaceful or dignified resting place. In recent years some people in the neighbourhood have been throwing garbage onto the area of the columbarium and numerous homeless individuals have been sleeping there, leaving all manner of refuse in the area, including syringes and other rubbish.

Applying to close the columbarium is a big step. Before the Council can apply to the authorities to close it and reinter the urns to a more suitable location, we need to seek the permission of the General Assembly to do so.

IN SUMMARY our congregation has two options:

1. To apply for permission to close the columbarium and relocate the urns. The cost of relocating the urns to a more suitable location is beyond the financial resources of the congregation and would necessitate selling the property to provide the needed funds to carry this out. Proceeds from the sale of the building would allow us to continue operating as a congregation, in a chapel located on any new development on the existing site, in our own church as renters should we sell to another congregation, as renters in another congregation’s church or in another location of our choosing.
The additional funds would also allow us to expand our outreach and provide additional programmes to our community. A new Future Committee could be formed to examine all available options.

Or

2. Not to close the columbarium, the consequences of which would be to abandon the idea of the selling of the property. As a result, our congregation would become insolvent in the near future, cease operating as a congregation, hand over the care of the columbarium to the City, and abandon the church.


As sad as our situation is, we must act responsibly so that our congregation is able to continue to worship. All viable options which would allow us to continue have been, and continue to be, explored.

As a reminder, voting members at the General Assembly meeting on March 13, 2022 are those who have taken Holy Communion at least once in the past year and have financially supported the congregation. These requirements are set out in both our current and previous constitutions.



Congregational Council of Toronto St. Peter’s Estonian Evangelical Lutheran Church

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