Vacant Saint John church to become creative hub, plus affordable housing

A 139-year-old vacant Saint John church will once again be a community hub as the Brickyard Creative — a space for artists, non-profits and social entrepreneurs with 38 units of affordable housing built on the site.

The Brickyard Creative is a project by Kaleidoscope Social Impact, who purchased the church to renovate and build on its land at the corner of Broad and Carmarthen streets in the city's south end.

"I think people will be pretty amazed," Seth Asimakos, co-founder and general manager of Kaleidoscope Social Impact, said about the eventual finished product.

St. John the Baptist Church was originally built in 1884 and has been vacant since 2018, when the Roman Catholic Diocese of Saint John closed nine churches across the province.

In 2021, it was purchased by a couple who planned to turn it into a climbing gym, but that plan fell through.

The church itself will be a space filled with offices, studios and meeting spaces, while an affordable housing complex will be built on the lot's empty space, which for now is being called Barrack Green Residences.

The residences will primarily be for women and their children, Asimakos said.

"Women coming and transitioning out of addictions," he said. "And so these are women that are actually getting their children back and getting stability back in their lives."

Units fill a need on the housing continuum

The affordable housing piece of the development will be built on empty space around the church, adjacent to Broadview Avenue.

Asimakos said it fits into other work Kaleidoscope is doing to help fill gaps in the housing continuum in Saint John — meaning the range of housing available in a community, from shelters to home ownership.

There's one project in the works on Waterloo Street, for people who are actively homeless. He said it will have basic accommodations but get people out of the cold and into a supportive space.

"This is the next stage … So transitioning, you know, from addictions to having their families back with them, their children back with them."

Asimakos said there's a significant need for that type of housing in the community.

WATCH |  Step inside the gutted church:

The development will have a mix of units, including bachelor, one bedroom, two bedroom and three bedroom.

"So it accommodates different sizes for families, which is really important for us," Asimakos said.

Asimakos said the project is looking to receive funding through the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation's Rapid Housing Initiative and from the provincial government.

If all goes well with applications and approvals, Asimakos estimates they could break ground on the new build in August.

A space for artists and innovators

The church was largely gutted in preparation for the climbing gym but will now be drastically overhauled.

The nave, or main space where parishioners once sat, will become three floors of office and studio space. While the space where the pulpit and stage are will remain open with 15-metre ceilings to be used for art displays and meeting space.

"What we seem to have covered [in Saint John] is, you know, gallery spaces, but what was missing is actually places for artists to work," Asimakos said.

The basement will be home to Brilliant Labs, a Saint John-based charity that provides youth with the opportunity to develop technological skills across Atlantic Canada.

"We're looking at this as one of the most innovative projects, you know, not just in Saint John area, but across New Brunswick and Atlantic Canada for Brilliant Labs," said Jeff Willson, Brilliant Labs' executive director. "So we're very excited."

The charity won't be offering programming at Brickyard until later this year. Willson said the hope is to move into a temporary space on the property in the spring while their permanent home in the basement is finished up.

Willson said the space will allow them to have tools that aren't allowed in Brilliant Labs' current location, like laser cutters, machining tools, and heat presses.

"We're really excited about having access to new equipment and cutting-edge technology, bringing it here in Saint John, and allowing youth to learn how to use it."