AN “outdated” 70-year-old hall at the Glass Church in St Lawrence could be demolished and replaced with a new building called the “Hope Centre” featuring a community space, café, offices and two new homes, if plans are given the green light.
The project, submitted by the St Matthew’s Congregation, seeks to replace the church’s existing 1954 hall and surrounding buildings that date back to the late 1800s with a “modern” centre and “multi-use space” designed to support a range of activities and services for Islanders and tourists of all ages.
The Hope Centre’s plans include a café, a large auditorium for events and activities, meeting rooms, and dedicated spaces for support groups such as Dementia Jersey.
The new building would also feature facilities for young people – possibly including a climbing wall – and a “warm room”, where Islanders struggling with the cost of heating their homes could gather during the colder months.
Two one-bedroom homes and 30 parking spaces are also included in the proposal.
The proposed changes to St Matthew’s Church, located between Victoria Avenue and Route de St Aubin, were resubmitted after similar plans were withdrawn in June.
This came after officers from the Planning Department recommended that the earlier plans, drawn up by Waddington Architects, be refused.
In a departmental assessment report issued by a Planning ahead of the Planning Committee’s meeting in June last year, it was stated that while the principle of replacing the hall was considered acceptable, the scale and mass of the proposed replacement units was not considered appropriate, and breached several planning policies.
Planners concluded that the “scale and mass of this development will dominate this highly sensitive site”.
In response, those behind the project have revised the plans to scale back the height of the centre’s roof; they have also reduced the number of bedrooms in the residential units from three to one.
Describing the vision behind the plans, St Matthew’s vicar, Phil Warren, said they were aiming to provide “a vessel of hope”, where residents can find “belonging, support, and a sense of community”.
“This is a community thing,” he said. “Our strapline for the vision is: ‘In the community, for the community, serving the community.’ It’s about creating something not just for now but for generations to come.”
Mr Warren said he felt this space was important to address the lack of community facilities in the area.
“There’s not much in this area for community groups,” he said. “You often have to go into town or out west to find something similar. We want to change that.”
Rev Warren explained that the existing facilities no longer met the community’s growing needs.
Groups such as Alcoholics Anonymous have been turned away because there is limited space, while outdated infrastructure at the site makes maintenance costly and inefficient, he said.
“We do what we can in terms of offering facilities and places for people to come, but we’re limited,” Rev Warren said.
“People deserve better. The buildings we have just aren’t modern-day facilities that people would expect.”
He also explained that the church congregation spends between £15,000 and £20,000 each year to make any necessary repairs and improvements to keep the buildings “wind and watertight” – which he described as “money down the drain”.
“Heating is costly due to outdated materials used in the walls and ceiling structure, our disabled access is not sufficient or welcoming, our toilet facilities are poor, our kitchen is too small, we try to make the most of the space but our private rooms are inadequate. And overall, the centre lacks flexibility and functionality,” he added.
