On Friday, April 25th, 2025, CentreVenture Development Corporation announced it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Parish of Holy Trinity, the Diocese of Rupert’s Land of the Anglican Church of Canada and Monteyne Architecture. The agreement is to conduct a feasibility study as the first step towards stabilizing and restoring the 1884 Holy Trinity Anglican Church at 256 Smith Street. Half of the cost of the first phase of the heritage rehabilitation study, $107,000, will be funded by the City of Winnipeg’s Gail Parvin Hammerquist Fund City-Wide Heritage Program. According to CentreVenture, this part of the study will include “building monitoring, surveying, condition assessment, environmental and hazardous materials assessments, geotechnical investigation, structural analysis and preliminary design of a new foundation.” There is no timeline for the study’s completion.

A 1989 geological survey of Holy Trinity Anglican Church revealed that the building had no foundation and major repairs were needed to prevent it from collapsing. Now the deeply cracked walls of the historic downtown landmark allude to the problems that hide within, looking rather distressing but having not yet rendered the church unsafe to occupy. Studies from the past suggested the cost of repairing the building could be upwards of $7 million. While the parish is committee to the long term sustainability of the structure, they cannot afford to fund the repair work required.

In spring 2024, it came to the public’s attention that Holy Trinity Anglican Church was is a state of disrepair. With many Winnipegger’s having connections to the historic building, concern about its fate rippled through the wider community. Heritage Winnipeg was unaware of the looming crisis until that time, and has received no responses when reaching out to the church – but remains optimistic. “Heritage Winnipeg is very relieved to see that this very important first step is being undertaken, as it is key to understanding what structural work is needed and the costs, before commencing,” said Cindy Tugwell, Heritage Winnipeg’s Executive Director. “It will also help determine how this historic downtown church can better fit the community’s needs in the future.”

Holy Trinity Anglican Church is “one of Canada’s finest examples of a 19th century Gothic Revival” designed by Charles H. Wheeler. Built of limestone and set in a park-like landscape, much of the building’s rich ornamentation remains unaltered after 140+ years. The church is protected from demolition or alteration of character defining elements by a 2008 municipal heritage designation and is also a National Historic Site of Canada. Today the church continues to serve its parish and the larger downtown community.