Today, St. Bart’s grapples with the one challenge these hardened servants of God have never faced: the neighbourhood is moving upscale.
A white tower crane today dwarfs St. Bart’s. Workers this week put the last windows on the 26-storey Paintbox Condos, east of the old church and, next door, are busy pouring concrete for a 10-storey condo and a Toronto Community Housing rental building.
“We hope that there are Anglicans moving in and that we can attract them,” says Mr. Buckland, as the growl, whine and clang of construction drown him out.
St Bart’s has nurtured a lot of young seminarians who have become faithful priests in Canada and the US.