Construction has begun on a new 26,000-square-foot synagogue and community centre in Forest Hill. The current location, an office above a Starbucks on Spadina Road, near Lonsdale Road, has long been too small for the growing membership, said Rabbi Elie Karfunkel.
“As soon as we moved into the [current location], we put our eye on something more permanent,” he said.
The new building, to be located on Spadina just north of St. Clair Avenue West, is modelled after the Jaslo synagogue in Poland, which was burned to the ground during the Second World War. The idea came from Karfunkel’s wife, who proposed the classic and regal structure for the neighbourhood.
“We wanted something with great character,” he said.
He makes it clear that this is not just a synagogue, but a community centre for Jews in the area. The four-storey building will have a rooftop patio, an occasion floor, a shul (place of prayer), a library, a museum and a number of classrooms.
Synagogue member Matt Simmons said he’s most excited for having a place people can celebrate their life cycles, such as their bat and bar mitzvahs.
The $12 million it will cost to build the centre was raised through private donations. Broader community fundraising efforts to support day-to-day operations have begun in earnest with the hiring of a full-time fundraising co-ordinator, said Rabbi Joel Wardinger, the centre’s executive director. Support for the community has been overwhelming, said Karfunkel, who looks forward to opening the centre in about a year.
“There is a bit of an urban renaissance for the Jewish community right now,” said Wardinger. He notes a number of young Jewish professionals and families have returned to downtown. “[The centre] will provide a real base for the young, vibrant community.”