On April 8th 2025, The Winnipeg Roundtable on the Future of Faith Properties brought together more than 100 leaders from across the city to address one of Winnipeg’s most urgent and overlooked challenges: the future of its aging faith properties. Many of these buildings face financial stress or risk of closure, yet they remain essential anchors for neighbourhood life—providing food programs, community services, housing supports, and gathering spaces. In partnership with 5468796 Architecture Inc. in the Shared Ground applied research initiative in the Shared Ground applied research initiative, Relevèn convened this city-wide forum to explore how churches and other faith organizations can be transformed into sustainable community assets. The event built on months of groundwork with the Winnipeg Foundation, the Mayor’s Office, and civic partners, establishing a strong foundation for collective action.
Hosted at St. Mary’s Road United Church, the April 2025 roundtable gathered leaders from municipal and provincial governments, Indigenous organizations, housing providers, planners, developers, heritage experts, and congregations. Participants engaged in panel discussions on adaptive reuse, redevelopment pathways, funding models, and policy opportunities—highlighting both the urgent risks and the enormous promise of faith properties. The conversations underscored the growing policy momentum in Winnipeg, including zoning reforms and new housing funding streams, and revealed a pipeline of nearly 1,000 housing units in pre-development across local congregations.
The event concluded with a clear message: faith properties are not relics of the past, but powerful tools for shaping Winnipeg’s future. With strong alignment across government, philanthropy, and community partners, the roundtable marked a pivotal step toward a portfolio-based approach—one that treats faith properties as coordinated civic assets rather than isolated projects. This collective vision positions Winnipeg to become a national leader in transforming sacred spaces into engines of housing, community programs, and neighbourhood vitality.
