Church’s Future Remains Uncertain Two Years After Closure

What will happen to East Harlem’s landmarked All Saints Church?

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By Labanya Maitra

The Church of All Saints, locked and fenced, stands at the corner of 129th and Madison Avenue, with a large, neon orange NO TRESPASSING sign on the door. Also known as the St. Patrick’s of Harlem, the church has been closed since August, 2015, along with its adjacent school.

All Saints Church is one of 18 Catholic churches the Archdiocese of New York has deconsecrated and shuttered. Some church buildings, like St. Thomas the Apostle Church, Our Lady of Vilnius Church and the Church of St. Vincent de Paul, were bought by hoteliers and developers or flipped within the last five years. All Saints’ fate, however, remains uncertain.

The church’s former community has slowly faded over two years. “The community was dispersed to other parishes in Harlem, although I know several very devout parishioners who no longer attend mass at any parish. Still others go to a different church every week,” said parishioner Daniel Kingery, 37, an artist and art handler, in an online interview. About 150 people would attend mass on any given Sunday, he said. “Very few ended up at St. Charles Borromeo, the parish with which we were merged, because it’s the furthest church from All Saints in the Central Harlem Deanery.”

During the deconsecration of All Saints, Kingery unsuccessfully appealed to Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan, archbishop of New York, against the closure. “In 2015, Cardinal Dolan merged All Saints with St. Charles Borromeo and his decree forbade regular masses and sacraments at All Saints,” said Kingery. He believes the goal was to profit from the properties’ sales.

Turned down by the Archdiocese, Kingery next appealed to the Congregation for the Clergy at the Vatican. It directed the Archdiocese to permit a minimum of two masses per year in All Saints, Kingery said. Cardinal Dolan never permitted more than the minimum, Kingery said, and a year later, issued another decree to deconsecrate the church building, he added.

The church belongs to the parish of St. Charles Borromeo-Resurrection-All Saints and not to the archdiocese, said Joe Zwilling, director of communications of the Archdiocese of New York. “The building is not on the market,” he said via email. “It is possible that the parish, after consultation with the archdiocese, may decide to sell the property, but that has not yet happened.  Were the property to be sold or leased, the proceeds would go to the parish.”

Zwilling added, “the parishes were merged as a result of the Making All Things New pastoral planning process, which involved several years of consultation, planning, discussion, and review, which sought to determine the best way to use the resources of the archdiocese.” The factors involved included falling attendance at mass, a shortage of priests and the high cost of maintaining church buildings.

All Saints, however, is a landmarked building, considered of historic significance to the city. The Landmarks Preservation Commission must approve in advance any sort of repair, alteration, demolition, reconstruction, or new construction. Interior renovations affecting the building’s structure require permits as well, said Amber Nowak, exterior affairs coordinator for the Commission.

Property prices are steadily rising in East Harlem, making the building’s sale financially attractive. Trulia, the real estate website, says homes on the block list for a median of $599,000.

However, landmark status complicates things. Andre Mauro from Mauro Brothers Real Estate in Harlem said landmark status means that the building cannot be torn down and can only be used to hold a congregation. If the only eligible buyers are other congregations, that would significantly lower the building’s sales price.

Kingery sees profit as the ultimate motive for the Archdiocese’s actions. “All Saints was merged with St. Charles Borromeo for purely financial reasons,” added Kingery. “All Saints is sitting on much more valuable property than St Charles Borromeo. Cardinal Dolan’s plan from the beginning was to merge the two parishes and sell All Saints. It’s important to note that All Saints is a large, historically-landmarked building in an area with growing property values.”

While the Archdiocese said that church is not for sale, “I think it’s pretty clear what they intend to do,” said Kingery.

(Photos by Labanya Maitra)

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