A proposal to demolish a section of a heritage structure in downtown St. John’s is creating a lot of chatter amongst local residents.

Parish Lane Development Inc has proposed to develop two buildings at 66-68 Queen’s Road with a total of 40 apartments between them.

To do this, part of the Cathedral Parish Hall must be demolished. As well, part of the area behind the hall, which is currently zoned as open space, must be developed.

The hall itself has been heavily altered over the years and there isn’t much of the original material that remains. The developer says they plan to incorporate some of what is left into their design, such as the original arch and some windows.

St. John’s city councilor Maggie Burton says residents have really been engaged with the issue. They organized their own meeting which also included heritage experts and city staff, in addition to the chatter she has been hearing. She says seeing so much public engagement is a good thing.

A public meeting hosted by the city on the issue is taking place on November 27th. The matter is expected to be back before council in January.