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It’s a rare grassy oasis in downtown Montreal.

On a sunny afternoon last week, lunching office workers and residents crowded into the green space. With St. Patrick’s Basilica’s soaring tower as a backdrop, some sat on blankets, othersperched on remnants of the stone foundations of a 19th-century home for the aged and homeless.

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“It’s a little well-kept secret: a green garden in the middle of downtown — it’s unique and rare,” said Amélie Côté, an area resident who opposes a plan to raze most of the unofficial park.

The debate over the green space is linked to a post-secondary institution in expansion mode and a landmark church with excess land, a need for cash and plans to spruce up its surroundings, parts of which are neglected and unsightly.

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St. Patrick’s, described as the heart of Montreal’s Irish population,is set to sell the green space — on de la Gauchetière St., between Beaver Hall Hill and St-Alexandre St. — and a parking lot next to the church for an undisclosed price.