A polarizing development in the heart of downtown St. John’s is now a step closer to approval.

A plan to demolish the Cathedral Parish Hall on Queen’s Road to make way for three brick townhouses has been before council for almost two years.

The hall is a city heritage building and part of a National Historic Site, which encompasses all of the towering churches in the area.

It was built in the early 1890s but Heritage NL and the province’s archaeology office say most of its value has been lost due to fire and renovations over the years, reducing it to a shell of its former self.

As a result, neither group is against the plan, but they want developer Parish Lane to salvage, retain, and document as much of the building as possible.

The hall’s fate has served as a flashpoint for the public and church groups concerned with losing the identity and character of the district.

Council had been waiting for the province to approve the necessary rezoning, which they now have.

They’re expected to pass those amendments at this afternoon’s public meeting, which would then send the matter to a public hearing on May 5.

Meanwhile, work continues on a separate plan for a ten-storey condo building behind the hall and across from The Rooms.