Buddhist temple for sale in historic Riverdale
A Korean Buddhist temple in the heart of Edmonton's historic Riverdale neighbourhood is up for sale.
The 100-year-old structure at 10155 89th St. is owned by Chun Su Kim, or Moon as he's called.
Moon says he purchased the building 18 years ago.
At age 82, he "hates to leave Alberta,” but the winters have become too cold for the former oilpatch worker, who ran work camp kitchens in northern Alberta.
First built as a Methodist church in the late 1900s, a living space was added when Moon bought the building. Since then, it has been a monthly gathering spot for about 25 Edmonton Buddhists.
Real estate agent Janey Ochotsky says the unusual listing comes with unique challenges for listing. A search of the property at the city of Edmonton assessment site, says Ochotsky, showed the sprawling temple as covering a mere 11 square feet.
It meant she had to employ rudimentary methods to find out just how big the building was.
"My dad and I measured the place,” says Ochotsky, and it came in "a little bit over 3,000 square feet.”
“So it's a significant structure in its size.”
Moon wants to set up a new temple when he moves Nelson, B.C., that would be three times bigger than his current building.
The temple building opens into a large worship space with vaulted ceilings and plenty of natural light. Ochotsky says it's zoned as RF2 for religious assembly purposes or potentially for a duplex development. The property is listed for sale at $475,000.
