RELIGION BENEFICIAL TO BUSINESS

A faith-based windfall
Grand places of worship - such as the new Hindu mandir in Toronto - can bring economic spinoffs
CHARLES FINLAY

Special to The Globe and Mail

July 31, 2007 at 7:52 AM EDT

TORONTO ?- Many of the properties in northwest Toronto are what might be expected to be found in an area that is generally zoned for industrial purposes: one- and two-storey warehouses along with equipment and storage yards.

But a notable exception has arisen in their midst that may in its own way have a significant impact on future development in the area.

A Hindu temple with head-turning architectural appeal that was officially opened this month is among some of the grand sacred buildings that have been erected in the Toronto area in recent years. Besides being a place of worship and spirituality, it is expected to bring some economic benefits (along with logistical pressures) to its local community.

With its hand-carved white marble spires topped with gold tips and fluttering red and white pennants, the newly completed BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir, which stands near the busy industrial intersection of Highway 427 and Finch Avenue West in Toronto, is an architectural masterpiece.


Workers put the finishing touches to the BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir in northwest Toronto before its grand opening ceremonies this month. (The Globe and Mail)

Fashioned from 24,000 blocks of limestone, marble and sandstone, the mandir is a particular kind of Hindu temple, constructed in accordance with ancient Vedic building principles. Based on the longevity of similar structures in India, it is estimated that the mandir will stand for 1,000 years or longer.

That kind of building quality doesn't come cheap. At least $40-million was spent on its construction, and that doesn't include the free labour of 400 volunteers from the congregation. (All of the initial funds for construction were raised from Canada's South Asian community.) These volunteers were joined by more than 100 expert craftsmen, who were flown to the site from India and lived there during the temple's construction.

As with any conventional construction project, the large initial outlay of funds was a boon to local contractors, who assisted with various elements of the project, including landscaping the grounds.

But these initial construction profits may be dwarfed by the spinoff benefits to be reaped by hotels, restaurants and retail businesses in this area of Toronto that will be called upon to house, feed and sell to the large groups of worshippers who will convene regularly at the complex.

"Every Sunday, there will be 2,000 to 2,500 people here," says Charles Sachdev, director of public relations for the BAPS (or Bochasanwasi Shri Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha) community in the Toronto area.

"On top of that, each month there will be a special event, which will bring 5,000 people. And on major Hindu festivals, we will expect 10,000 people or more throughout the day."

And then there are the tourists.

Although Mr. Sachdev won't guess at how many visitors might come from across Canada to admire the mandir and the Museum of Indo-Canadian Heritage, which occupies the temple's bottom level, he points out that a mandir outside of London attracts approximately one million visitors a year. "[The Toronto mandir] is going to be a major attraction," he predicts. "It will be a huge economic benefit."

Although the mandir has garnered much recent attention - its opening on July 21 was attended by Prime Minister Stephen Harper - it is not the only new sacred building that is bringing economic development to its area.

On Woodbine Avenue in Markham, north of Toronto, the imposing green and gold onion-shaped domes of the Cathedral of the Transfiguration of Our Lord soar 65 metres over a now-empty field.

This Slovak Catholic cathedral was conceived and largely financed by the late businessman Stephen Roman, who envisioned it as a tribute to the Slovak community in Canada. Blessed by Pope John Paul II during a visit in 1984, the cathedral is largely complete, although mosaics continue to be installed in the structure's massive central dome.

Already it is making an important economic impact. A developer, Romandale Farms Ltd., has designed a residential and business development called Cathedraltown around the cathedral. "The European cathedral town - that's the inspiration for Cathedraltown," says Michael Mahoney, architectural design and marketing co-ordinator for the development. "[The cathedral] is important to people spiritually, and it is such an important piece of architecture. It is already a pilgrimage site."

The design for Cathedraltown envisions two separate commercial elements. A business park will border Highway 404 to the west of the cathedral, and a variety of businesses will occupy the edges of open piazzas, which will surround the cathedral's front steps. "There will be cafés and restaurants and a market area," Mr. Mahoney says. The businesses will serve the residents of Cathedraltown's 15,000 new homes (Phase 1 of this project has already been built), as well as visitors and pilgrims to the site. These commercial developments are scheduled for completion in three to five years.

But real economic change isn't three to five years away for Gerry and Paula Fagogenis, proprietors of the Sunrise Grill Family Restaurant, which has stood on Woodbine Avenue, a short drive north of Cathedraltown, for 50 years.

They acknowledge that it is difficult to tell which of their customers are from the new developments in the region and which are not. But they do know that the economic growth is helping their restaurant. But for Mrs. Fagogenis, the formula is simple: "More people, more business," she remarks with a smile.

Whether the mandir will provide a similar boon remains to be seen. Already there is at least one challenge to overcome - transportation.

There is no regular public transit service to the mandir. And although officials from the BAPS community have been in consultation with the city government and the Toronto Transit Commission, there are no plans to provide public transit to the mandir in the near future.

Access by a large number of cars also may also prove tricky. Although the mandir's location is well served by Highway 427 and Finch Avenue, and there is a large parking lot at the site, the temple is directly accessible only from a single road, Claireville Drive. But at the moment there is no talk of adding other access. "Let's see how popular [the mandir] becomes," Mr. Sachdev says.