Mark A. Bower
Philadelphia Historic Preservation Corporation
Inspired March-April 1989 pp.4-6, 8, 16-17

Putting Offfices in the Sanctuary

UTILIZING REHABILITATION TAX CREDITS FOR ADAPTIVE REUSE OF RELIGIOUS BUILDINGS

Mark Bower is the director of technical services for architects Killinger Kise Franks Straw in Philadelphia. This article was published with assistance from the staff of the National Park Service's Mid-Atlantic Regional Office, especially Mary Grzeskowiak. All photographs are courtesy of the National Park Service, except where noted.

Like the owners of many other kinds of historic buildings, religious congregations may find that caring for their landmark structures has become an overwhelming task, due to decaying building fabric and sharply rising maintenance costs. In addition, changing urban environments affect the use of historic buildings either by increasing the pressure to build bigger and higher or, on the other hand, by eliminating the need for the original use of the building. In most communities, significant historic buildings have been preserved by being adapted to new uses: a town house can become a health clinic; a hotel converted into offices; a fire station into an apartment building.

When it is necessary for a congregation to leave its religious building, a for-profit developer can follow the Sallie course, by converting a former church or synagogue to a new use.  Adaptive  reuse can be defined as altering the space in a building to serve a new purpose or  function . In reuse projects, the building is retained as an important landmark in its neighborhood contributing to its stability and continuity. The new use of the structure-- weather it be for housing, business, cultural activities or human services--may also contrite significantly to the health of the community at a time when a religious use is no  longer viable.

Developers of historic religious buildings, however, often face several  formidable obstacles. First, developers must overcome the perception that the adaptive use of a church for profit-making purposes is desecration. Second, the reuse of religious structures present particularly difficult design problems. Finally, the costs associated with a rehabilitation of a religious structure, like most historic buildings, can be prohibitive when maintenance has been deferred and deterioration of roof, walls, windows and doors Building code and zoning requirements are also barriers, and basic mechanical (heating, ventilation) maybe inadequate or non-existent.  Given that of an adaptive reuse must be a building which is competitive in the real potential developers of historic religious buildings often need incentives project work.  Fortunately, a major incentive was created by the fedural government in 1976 to encourage the rehabilitation and reuse of many types of  historic buildings. The incentive, called the Investment Tax Credit is this: A 20% tax credit may be taken by the owner of a certified historic building  rehabilitated for commercial, industrial or rental residential requirements, however,    must be met: 1) the building must need substantial  rehabilitation (not just painting or minor repairs)

The building must be listed on the National Register of Historic a contributing structure in a certified  the rehabilitation must follow the "Standards for Rehabilitation" which were established by the Sectary of the Interior, and are administered by the regional offices of the  National Park Service (NPS).

The key to a  successful  rehabilitation project is close adherence to the standards and other NPS  and  rehabilitation guidelines were developed to ensure that the buildings would be carefully maintained during the rehabilitation work. One of the major, an ITC rehabilitation project being evaluated by the Park Service concerns the reuse of the main worship space in an historic church or synagogue. The sanctuary or auditorium is almost always the most significant space in a religious building, often highly ornamented and usually the single largest room.  Open space can, however, be a liability in adaptive reuse projects because the demand for such a space is limited, especially in urban areas where the need is greatest for commercial and residential space. In addition, which emphasize the importance of retaining and protecting the signiicant floor plans, arrangements of space and applied finishes of historic interiors. It would, therefore be difficult to radically alter an historic sanctuary space without violating one or more of these standards.

The problem with successfully completing any ITC project involving a religious property is apparent in the statistics available from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Office of the National Park Service, which covers states ranging for New England to parts of the Midwest. Of 10,000 tax credits projects proposed between 1976 to 1988, only 45 applications were filed for church or synagogue rehabilitations. Of these applications, only 22 received final certification by the NPS; most of the remainder (14) were never submitted for final review, and nine were denied certification because of treatments that violated the Standards.

The following case studies of projects, which were approved by the Park Service, help illustrate the ITC review process they are intended to provide examples of how some developers took advantage of reuse opportunities in their communities and earned tax credits while sensitively rehabilitating former religious buildings. (Because NPS policy regarding acceptable rehabilitation approaches has evolved over the last several years, keep in mind that some projects certified in the past may not be approved today):

Reuse opportunities: When Original Features are Lost to Deterioration

Plymouth Congregational Church in New Haven, Connecticut is an 1890's Romanesque revival style church individually listed on the National Register. Distinguished by an octagonal interior sanctuary plan and decorated with elaborate plaster ornamentation, the church was converted to a synagogue, and the original furnishings were removed. The new congregation also covered the ceiling with acoustical tile and installed recessed lighting fixtures, both of which obscured the original character of the ceiling. The building was later abandoned and stood vacant for several years. The interior deteriorated from long term neglect, vandalism and extensive water penetration.

A rehabilitation program to convert the building into medical offices was proposed which required the insertion of three office floors in the sanctuary space. As part of the rehabilitation, the majority of the ornamental plasterwork, stained glass, cornice and covered ceiling were to be removed. Upon review, the regional Park service office denied approval of the rehab project, citing that the damaged plasterwork was repairable and that insertion of floors and partitions in the sanctuary space would "… leave no area for perception of even part of the original. grand, open plan."

When the owners appealed the case and submitted additional information illustrating extensive damage to the ceiling and plasterwork, the project was certified. Why? Although historic details should ideally be restored, in cases like Plymouth Congregational, the original features were shown to be deteriorated beyond repair. As long as standards for the overall rehabilitation are met, the project will likely be approved. However, it is imperative that areas of deterioration be documented before the rehabilitation begins.

Reuse Opportunities: When the Space is Small

One building type which lends itself well to reuse is the kind of small church often found in small towns or rural areas. Such a church usually has a smaller sanctuary, which can be converted for commercial or residential use without major subdivision. Support facilities, such as bathrooms and kitchens, can be inserted in secondary spaces (such as vestry rooms), leaving the sanctuary open.

A successful example of this type of rehabilitation is the former Seal Harbor Congregational Church. Constructed in 1902, the church is a superb Shingle Style structure, similar to homes built at the turn of the century in New England resort areas. Even though the church was rehabilitated for single-family seasonal rental, the character-defining features of the exterior were maintained. The major interior space (the former sanctuary) was left open as a multi-use room, although the rear wall was moved forward to create two bedrooms. The Kitchen and baths were inconspicuously inserted in secondary spaces. The old organ loft became a sleeping loft. Seal harbor is an excellent model, which could be adapted to similar churches in other parts of the country.

Reuse Opportunities:When Interior Features are Less Significant

In some cases, the interior of a church building may have been altered so many times that original fabric and integrity has been lost. Charles Street Meeting house in Boston's Beacon Hill Historic District, for example, designed by Asher Benjamin in 1807, was used by several different congregations through the years, and each adapted the building to suit its own needs. The last occupant was a Unitarian-Universalist congregation, which used the building until 1978. Overcoming restrictions imposed by local ordinances and property deeds was the first hurdle for the developer who finally won local approval to convert the building into an architect's home and office, with room for additional commercial and retail space.

When the time came to determine the interior plan for the adaptive reuse, it was clear that although the sanctuary seemed relatively intact, it had been extensively altered in the 19th century. In review, the Park service determined that this interior space had relatively little significance in comparison to the original Federal style exterior by Benjamin, which had been left unaltered. Therefore, the developer was permitted to extensively subdivide the interior both vertically and horizontally, while incorporating some existing ornamental features in into the new interior design. Again, the pre-rehabilitation condition of the building was a critical consideration during the NPS review process.

Reuse Opportunities: When Interior Features are less Significant.

Like the Charles Street Meeting House, the interior of the First Congregational Church in Newport, Rhode Island had been extensively altered throughout its history. As originally constructed in 1730, the church featured a prominent steeple and Georgian-styled ornament. In the 1830s the structure was remodeled in the Greek Revival Style, Which resulted in the removal of the steeple and major remodeling of both the interior and exterior. In the mid 20's the building became a Knights of Columbus Hall. And all of the interior finishes were removed, With the exception of portions of the choir and vestibule. Mezzanine levels were added to the sanctuary, and historic sash windows on the side elevations were removed. By the time rehabilitation was ready to begin, very little remained of the original interior or exterior design.

A developer's plan to rehabilitate the building for luxury apartment units was denied by the regional office of the park service due to treatments it judged to be both out of character with other buildings in the historic district and potentially harmful to the structure. These treatments included the insertion of non historical windows on the facade, skylights, roof cuts for decks, a garage in the cellar, and removal of the remains of the choir loft and vestibule.

When the project was appealed, it was determined that the most significant remaining feature of the building-due to the repeated interior and exterior remodeling was the configuration of the front facade. The only major change that had been made to the facade as part of the rehabilitation was the removal of historic sash windows. As a remedied treatment, therefore, the inappropriate, new windows were replaced again with approved windows and the rehabilitation received final certification.

Reuse Opportunities: When A New Use is Compatible with Old

The reuse of a worship place is considerably easier when the new use is compatible with the original use. An excellent illustration of this subject is the former Westminster Presbyterian Church in Baltimore. The Gothic Revival church complex was put on the real estate market, subject to a long-term lease, by the Westminster Presbyterian Trust, a charitable organization dedicated to preservation of the church. The trust found a suitable lessee in the University of Maryland Law School, which converted the vacant church complex to study and research rooms and a lecture/moot court/ concert hall for the law school. The cemetery and the catacombs became a public park.

The former sanctuary was successfully converted into a multiple-use hall while retaining the majority of its character-defining features-notably the open volumes of the space, hammerbeam truss ceiling and Gothic-Revival Style sash windows. Because the sanctuary was essentially left intact, the Park Service allowed for minor modifications, such as removal of the balcony rail for better visibility and the construction of raised platforms on the sidewalls.

(Ed. Note: We encourage you to obtain more information about the Standards for Rehabilitation and the ITC by writing to : Preservation Services Division, Cultural Resources Management, National Park Service, Washington, DC 200013.)