January 27, 2017

Demolition order sought for Mater Dolorosa Church; deterioration of steeple cited as factor

REGIONAL
Staff report

SPRINGFIELD – Officials representing the Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield on Thursday, Jan. 26, informed the city of Holyoke’s building inspector of its plan to seek a demolition order for the former Mater Dolorosa church and friary on the corner of Lyman and Maple streets. Ongoing deterioration of the steeple was cited as a deciding factor.

The church was closed in June 2011 as part of a merger with Holyoke’s Holy Cross Parish, re-founded on July 1, 2011 as Our Lady of the Cross Parish and worshipping at Holy Cross Church on Sycamore Street. At that time, the diocese expressed concerns over the structural integrity of the steeple among other reasons for closing the Lyman Street church.

Opponents to the closing rejected that finding, citing a report they had received from a consultant, Neal B. Mitchell, president of Neal Mitchell Associates of Northbridge, Mass., and a registered structural engineer. In it, Mitchell said the steeple needed some work but was stable and met all building wind load parameters. 

However, in subsequent filings with the Vatican, addressing an appeal to the decision to close the parish and church, the diocese pointed out that Mitchell’s findings referenced the wrong building wind load standards. Then diocesan Bishop Timothy A. McDonnell sought to get a meeting to sort out the conflicting reports, but the meeting failed to materialize. 

The recent decision is based on new evidence of more serious ongoing deterioration of the steeple. Late in 2016, parish staff discovered a significant piece of the wood section of the steeple’s exterior had fallen to the ground. They immediately alerted the diocese, which dispatched structural engineer Bernie Hunt, who inspected the steeple.

Earlier this week, Hunt issued his findings that the steeple now posed a significant threat of collapsing. Springfield Bishop Mitchell T. Rozanski directed that Hunt’s report be immediately shared with city officials.

Diocesan spokesperson, Mark E. Dupont, acknowledged this would be devastating news for the Holyoke community.

“I know people will think this was our plan from the onset, but that simply is untrue. In fact, at the time the piece was discovered late last year, the parish and diocesan real estate consultant were planning to finally put the former church on the market this very month,” Dupont stated.

He went on to acknowledge that the diocese was also increasingly mindful of the risks, having learned an important lesson from last year’s near collapse of the front of St. Francis of Assisi Church in North Adams, which resulted in an emergency demolition and street closings.

While the concern is centered on the steeple, Dupont says the entire structure is in need of more than $5 million in repairs.

“In light of the overall condition of the church, which would exceed the parish’s financial capacity and, frankly, any market value, it was decided to seek a full demolition,” he told iObserve.

Dupont went on to state that the cost of strategically removing or demolishing only the steeple would cost as much as the full demolition, in part because of the need to protect the remaining structure as well as the follow-up costs. And he stated emphatically that even if the church would have been in a historic district, that would not have changed the outcome.

“Historic districts don’t prevent owners and cities from taking necessary safety measures, as we learned in North Adams where St Francis was in a historic district and the city ordered us to take it down immediately.”

Dupont did say that obstacles faced by the parish and diocese since the closing delayed any effort to sell the church intact at an earlier date. 

“We may have fared better had we been able to bring the property to market back in 2011, but, as is well known, we had an occupation and appeal process that used up valuable time,” he said.

Dupont did say the diocese hoped the city’s historic commission would not impose a six-month hold on demolition in light of the very real safety concerns.