Wharton-Wesley United Methodist Church Sanctuary (Philadelphia)
LOCAL CONGREGATIONS IN TRANSITION BY RACHEL HILDEBRANDT
16  SUMMER 2018 | context | AIA Philadelphia
PHOTO: CHRIS KENDIG
A Partners for Sacred Places staff member for nearly seven years, I began as an intern while studying historic preservation at the University of Pennsylvania, and now work as a senior program manager with a focus on research and development within the Philadelphia region -– our headquarters and de facto research and development laboratory. I've supported dozens of projects over the past seven years, including a recent examination of the factors that contribute to congregational vulnerability and resilience. This project, which was funded by The Pew Charitable Trusts and conducted in partnership with PennPraxis, produced an updated citywide inventory of older, purpose-built sacred places and an accompanying narrative that summarized our key research findings. This project afforded me the opportunity to develop a comprehensive understanding of the range of actual and perceived options facing congregations in transition as well as the attitudes and processes surrounding the transition of the buildings themselves. Thus, the following account reflects what I learned. It does not reflect the opinion of The Pew Charitable Trusts. THE PHILADELPHIA STORY Philadelphia’s religious building stock is in transition, due in large part to the declining memberships and resources of many congregations. And — this is crucial — the moment when a building is sold by a congregation or its denominational office to a new user will likely decide its long-term fate. The numbers confirm this. Of the city’s 839 purpose-built religious properties, seventeen percent are no longer in religious use, and half are no longer occupied by the original congregation. And since 2009, at least 30 religious buildings were demolished (2 additional properties, Christian Street Baptist Church and Christ Memorial Reformed Episcopal Church, are slated to be demolished this year). Many if not most of the Mainline Protestant congregations (i.e., Methodist, Presbyterian, Episcopal, Lutheran, A.M.E., United Church of Christ and other older Protestant traditions) that have not yet
AIA Philadelphia | context | SUMMER 2018 17
Inside of Wharton-Wesley United Methodist Church (Philadelphia)
left the city’s less affluent neighborhoods and transitioned their buildings to congregations of other denominations, are likely to do so in the next three to five years. There is great opportunity to initiate new congregations or new programs at these sites, but most denominational offices lack the capacity to do so. Meanwhile, 'hermit crab congregations,' which took on properties built by congregations of other (typically Mainline Protestant or Roman Catholic) denominations, are struggling to maintain their buildings. Many suffered from deferred maintenance under their original owners. Instead of attempting to restore their buildings with scarce reserves, these congregations are deaccessioning them. This trend is apparent among Roman Catholic-built church complexes that were deaccessioned by the Archdiocese of Philadelphia in the early 1990s. My cousin, Patrick Hildebrandt of Philadelphia Church Project, uses tongue-in-cheek phrases such as “North Philadelphia Swath of Destruction” and “The Year of Hell” to describe the period in which Catholic churches in North Philadelphia and West Philadelphia were closed and subsequently sold to independent, mostly African American congregations or aspirational nonprofit organizations. Nearly three decades later, many of these buildings are coming onto the market for a second time. Garden of Prayer Church of God in Christ, located at 28th and Diamond Streets in North Philadelphia, is in this very position. In 1994, the Pentecostal congregation purchased the church and rectory of Most Precious Blood Roman Catholic Church, which is on the National Register of Historic Places. Two decades later, the congregation worships in rectory’s parlor while the sanctuary sits empty year round. The congregation hopes to relocate in the near future. Often, hermit crab congregations transition their properties to real estate developers who intend to demolish, clearing the path for new construction. When I examined the twenty-eight demolitions that took place between 2009 and 2016 for Hidden City Philadelphia, I found that of the 28 demolitions, 22 (79 percent) were associated with development pressure; of the 22 demolitions associated with development pressure; and 20 (91 percent) made way for new
18 SUMMER 2018 | context | AIA Philadelphia
housing. I also discovered the following about the 22 demolitions: • no instances in which the congregation that originally erected the building (the first occupant) sold to a developer who planned to demolish • 15 instances in which a hermit crab congregation sold to a developer who planned to demolish • three instances in which a congregation resulting from a merger sold to a developer who planned to demolish • three instances in which congregation’s denominational office —which acquired property upon the congregation’s disbandment—sold to a developer who planned to demolish. This data suggests that the length and strength of a congregation’s attachment to its property matters. Attachment substantially affects the building’s outcome. Let’s back up, though. Let’s discuss the reasons that congregations – original occupants and hermit crabs alike – are transitioning their buildings, and the rationale that informs their decision-making processes. VULNERABILITY AND RESILIENCE Vulnerability and resilience are at the heart of the PennPraxisPartners study. Initially, we aimed to classify congregations as either vulnerable or resilient. It was impossible to do this, however, because any given congregation exhibits signs of both vulnerability and resiliency. A congregation is vulnerable when one or more circumstances open it up to possible closure, merger or relocation. Examples include:
• • • • • •
Poor leadership; Unstable or changing leadership; Inability to sustain a paid, full-time clergyperson; A declining trend in membership and giving – and particularly decline in membership; Significant internal conflict; and/or An antagonistic relationship with denominational leaders or unsupportive leaders, where applicable.
PHOTOS: CHRIS KENDIG
When a congregation is facing these realities while also trying to plan and live out a future, preservation of the institution almost always takes precedent over preservation of the building. Different circumstances, including both internal and external factors, can render the building vulnerable. A building is vulnerable when:
•
The congregation's attitude reflects a desire to preserve the institution at any cost to the building; • There is pressure to sell due to real estate conditions (this is greatly compounded in situations in which the property is not protected by local historic designation); • The present owner is not the original owner/occupant; • Its owner exhibits inability or unwillingness to properly maintain the building; and • Its owner has never retained a professional to assess the condition of the building envelope and systems. Consequently, struggling congregations explore the following options: downsizing into smaller, more manageable properties; merging into other, typically stronger congregations; and closing their doors altogether. They explore each of these options, in that order – hoping, first, to keep the community of worshippers together in familiar surroundings and second, to keep the community together in any location. This ability to respond to hardship and adapt to survive is resilience. Ironically, congregational resilience can render its building vulnerable. Congregations that are not struggling transition their buildings as well. This is especially true of commuter congregations (congregations comprised of congregants that do not live in the vicinity of the church) in communities with strong housing markets. In this context, congregations are aiming to extract the value of their real estate; to simplify congregants’ commutes; and to expand access to parking.
Inside of Wharton-Wesley United Methodist Church Sanctuary (Philadelphia)
A notable example of this occurred in 2015, when New Hope Temple Baptist Church sold its historic, yet unprotected building to a real estate developer who has since replaced it with townhouses. The building, originally home to Union Baptist Church, was where renowned vocalist Marian Anderson first performed and where her vocal talent was cultivated as a teenager (it is a common misperception that Anderson first began singing at Union Baptist Church’s current location at 1910 Fitzwater Street, where the congregation moved in 1916 when she was 19 years old). New Hope Temple Baptist Church has since relocated to Germantown, where it purchased a historic Episcopal church. LOOKING FORWARD It is likely that unprecedented numbers of religious buildings will be transitioned out of religious use in the years to come. Many of the buildings that close will be demolished, and many will be converted for residential use. In either scenario, the loss will be significant, resonating across the community. At the same time, these insights give the design community an opportunity to reflect on reuse models past and present, and to create new models in which historic sacred places can be shared and transformed in ways that contribute to a sense of community. n
Rachel Hildebrant is a Senior Program Manager for Partners for Sacred Places.
Inside of Wharton-Wesley United Methodist Church Sanctuary (Philadelphia)
AIA Philadelphia | context | SUMMER 2018 19
THIS ARTICLE WAS PREVIOUSLY PUBLISHED IN THE SUMMER 2018 ISSUE OF AIA PHILADELPHIA’S CONTEXT MAGAZINE
Sacred Places/Civic Spaces is a partnership between the Community Design Collaborative and Partners for Sacred Places to re-envision underutilized, purpose built religious properties as community hubs. The eighteen-month community-engaged design initiative is underwritten by the William Penn Foundation.
Partners for Sacred Places Social Media Facebook | @PartnersSacredPlaces Instagram | @sacredplaces
Community Design Collaborative Social Media Facebook | @cdesignc Twitter | @cdesignc_tweets Instagram |@cdesigncphl
AIA Philadelphia Social Media Facebook | @AIAPhiladelphia Twitter | @aiaphiladelphia Instagram | @aiaphiladelphia