Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston Closing More Than 80 of its 357 Parishes

Abstract (Document Summary)>The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston is in the process of closing more than 80 of its 357 parishes due to budget concerns. Organizers at the Boston Preservation Alliance and Preservation Massachusetts are working to preserve the religious properties by reselling the properties to other religious groups for houses of worship or by turning the properties into residential condominiums.

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Citing monetary issues, demographic shifts, and maintenance costs, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston is in the process of closing more than 80 of its 357 parishes. Amid the sometimes litigious and rancorous shutdowns, preservationists, community groups, and planning officials are scrambling to advance appropriate uses for the parish holdings. The archdiocese encompasses 144 towns in eastern Massachusetts. In addition to church buildings, many parishes also own rectories, convents, schools, and parish halls.>At this fall's 2004 Statewide Historic Preservation Conference in Salem, Massachusetts, the Boston Preservation Alliance and Preservation Massachusetts staged a charrette on the reuse and conservation of archdiocese buildings. Preservationists, planners, architects, and others hashed out a range of reuse options for parishes. The organizers will circulate a summary of the charrette as a resource for groups looking to preserve religious properties.

The designers considered as a case study Blessed Sacrament in Boston's Jamaica Plain neighborhood, which closed on August 31. The massive Renaissance Revival church, which has an octagonal tower, was completed in 1917. According to the panel, selling it to another religious group for use as a house of worship would be considered the "highest and best use," maintaining the building's function and requiring the least conversion. But the most likely use, it appears, would be for residential condominiums. Stained-glass windows, reliquaries, and other objects would be removed if the church were to be deconsecrated. This would carve up the interior but generally preserve the envelope and significant architectural details.

Saving all existing parish structures would be difficult, say charette participants, but the most significant could be preserved if others were sacrificed for high-return development. Officials and concerned citizens stressed the need for community input and a coordinated approach. If there are willing buyers, reuse of churches and their auxiliary buildings as places of worship, housing, even for commercial mixed-use and schools, is the best preservation scenario and can often fetch better than fair market prices.