The following post comes
from a piece I wrote for the blog, Rochester Subway, which you should
definitely be taking a look at if you are not familiar with it already. This historic
church complex was rehabilitated using historic tax credits with help from my
company, Preservation Studios
and architecture services from the fantastic firm of SWBR Architects and has been one of my favorite
to date.
As many in Buffalo know, the
current Department of the Interior’s Standards do not allow for the interior of
a church to be significantly divided within the historic tax credit program. Often
without the benefit of these credits, the large expense of rehabbing a church doesn’t
add up. This has resulted in many a wonderful church sent to the landfill, most
recently the
church at Colvin and Tacoma in North Buffalo.
The church at Holy Rosary
was reused for community space that caters to the surrounding neighborhood and
serves as a good model for our churches here. Additionally the former convent,
rectory, and non-original school were converted to housing. It wasn’t just
about the church complex though, the project involved strategic infill in the
surrounding neighborhood as well. There are plenty of intact church complex
here in Buffalo that could benefit from a very similar reuse that goes beyond
the church and focuses on the overall community impact. Here is the post from
Rochester Subway:
Rochester’s landmark Holy
Rosary Church and Catholic school complex at Lexington and Dewey Avenues has
been rehabilitated for new residential units and a large community space in the
former church. The $15 million project by Providence Housing
Development and SWBR Architects was made possible
with equity provided by Enterprise Community Partners, City home-renovation
grants & loans, and a payment in lieu of taxes agreement.
At the time of the
groundbreaking in August 2012, Congresswoman Louise Slaughter praised
Providence Housing for bringing “affordable, attractive housing to a community
that eagerly awaits such good news.” Well, wait no more. The ribbon was cut
this past November, and the historic church buildings have emerged as 60 units
of much needed affordable housing and community space.
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| Although much of the church is now community space, several rows of pews were retained for seating |
It’s important to note that
this project wasn’t limited to only the church complex, it also included
strategic infill in the immediate neighborhood around Holy Rosary.
 |
| Map of infill development as part of the project. Twenty-five new single family homes were constructed. All the new builds are located in the ten blocks adjacent to Holy Rosary as part of a comprehensive plan to impact a small area with new builds, rehab projects, and the church complex for the best impact possible. |
The target area for the new
builds includes a portion of the Dewey-Driving Park neighborhood, which was
selected based the amount of vacant homes and lots, the potential for
meaningful and noticeable results, and the planned investment already present
in the area.
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| View of the church from the choir loft. |
The primary goal of
Providence Housing in completing the project was to provide a catalyst for the
revitalization of the surrounding area and improve housing opportunities and
accessibility.
 |
| New kitchen in the the rehabilitated rectory |
Providence was awarded from
the City of Rochester, on behalf of NCS Community Development, an additional
$220,000 in HOME funds to expand the reach of work currently being completed in
the area. These funds were awarded to NCS to leverage current and future funds
for rehab of the interior and exterior of homes within our target geography.
 |
| Features like the original layout of rooms and details like this fireplace were retained |
The rehabilitation of the
church complex utilized the historic tax credit program, which meant a listing
on the National Register of Historic Places. All the work had to be completed
within the Department of the Interior’s Standards for Rehabilitation so
maintaining the open volume of the church was essential. Most of the pews were
removed for flexible space. The rectory, convent, and school were all converted
to apartment units.
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| Exterior of the rectory with the arcaded pergola leading to the church |
The history of Holy Rosary
parish extends back to 1889, when Bishop McQuaid initiated a small Catholic
Mission from St. Patrick’s Church to serve the Glenwood area of Rochester.
Glenwood occupied the northwest part of the city, bounded on the north by the
city line, the east by the Genesee River, the south by the intersection of Deep
Hollow with the Erie Canal and the west by the New York Central tracks. At the
time of its inception, the mission served 89 Catholic families in this area who
previously traveled to St. Patrick’s Cathedral in the middle of the city to
worship.
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| The small chapel in the former convent |
Bishop McQuaid established
dozens of Catholic churches across the city to serve the Catholic immigrant
communities—particularly Germans and Irish—whose children faced discrimination
in public schools. Holy Rosary served a mostly Irish working class population.
It was Rochester’s fifteenth Catholic church and among twenty-six parishes that
Bishop McQuaid established.
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| Exterior of the convent before work began |
In 1890, construction began
on a small chapel at the corner of Row (Lexington) and Finch Streets. It was
completed the following year and accommodated about 330 people. A school
building, 38’ x 21’, was erected at the rear of the chapel and the school was
run by the Sisters of St. Joseph. By 1896, the congregation had grown large
enough that it separated from St. Patrick’s and became its own parish. Father
John Van Ness led the new Holy Rosary parish. The same year marked a shift in
immigration patterns to the United States that impacted Rochester’s population
and in turn Holy Rosary parish. In 1896, more immigrants from Southern and
Eastern Europe arrived in the United States than from Northwestern Europe, and
Rochester saw an influx of Italians in particular. Holy Rosary parish grew as
immigrants, seeking manufacturing jobs in the city, settled in the Glenwood
area (later called the Edgerton neighborhood). As the parish grew, the small
chapel and school became too small for the congregation’s needs. In 1904, the
cornerstone of a new church and school was laid at the corner of Lexington and
Oriole Streets. This construction cost $30,000.
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| Exterior of the convent after rehabilitation |
The building phase also
included a convent for the sisters who ran the school. Until the convent on
Oriole was built in 1911, the sisters traveled back and forth from their
motherhouse on Augustine Street. The convent cost $17,393. The Sisters of St.
Joseph came to Western New York at the request of Bishop John Timon of the
Diocese of Buffalo in 1854. Fourteen years later, when the Diocese of Rochester
formed from the eastern part of the Diocese of Buffalo, Bishop Bernard McQuaid
asked the Sisters of St. Joseph to establish a system of parochial schools, of
which Holy Rosary was a part. In January 1891, four days after Bishop Bernard
McQuaid celebrated the first Mass in the original church, Sr. Raphael Leary and
Sr. Aloysia Lonergan opened the parish school to fifty-eight pupils.
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| Ariel view of Holy Rosary before the original school burned and was replaced |
Holy Rosary School grew
significantly during the next decades, reaching enrollment of over 1,000
students in the 1960s. The Sisters of St. Joseph continued to staff the school,
providing a strong educational and spiritual foundation to Holy Rosary
students. The school remained under the administration of the Sisters of St.
Joseph through the 1980s, and members of the congregation continued to serve
the parish as pastoral ministers through the time of the parish’s closing in
2008. In addition to opening nearly one hundred elementary schools and high
schools, the Sisters established and operated Nazareth College, St. Joseph’s
Hospital in Elmira, St. Ann’s Home for the elderly, and St. Joseph’s Villa (for
children without family support). They also established missions to Selma,
Alabama in 1940 and to Brazil in 1964, extending the Sisters’ work across the
globe.
 |
| Interior of the church towards the altar before |
The parish continued to grow
to the point that the new school and church became insufficient after ten
years. Father Arthur Hughes, who was appointed pastor in 1914, proposed that a
new building be constructed in the Spanish Mission style. He traveled to the
west coast for seven weeks in 1915 to visit Spanish Mission Churches and become
familiar with the style. The following year, he presented plans for a church
and rectory designed by John T. Comes and John E. Kauzor of Pittsburgh in
partnership with Charles W. Eldridge of Rochester.
Contemporary descriptions of
the design and historical accounts of its construction identify the complex as
exemplary of the Spanish Mission style, likely because of such visible details
as the red tile roof, the Mudejar rose window and the arcaded pergola. Despite
these features, which clearly evidence the intention of making Holy Rosary a
unique building in the area, a more apt description of the complex also
considers its situation within the Arts and Crafts zeitgeist of the time. Arts
and Crafts philosophy prized natural materials and craftsmanship, which was
articulated in Rochester through brick and Medina sandstone and references to
such Prairie School features as overhanging eaves and brackets.
In addition to these
elements, the interior of the rectory at Holy Rosary displayed Arts and Crafts
aesthetics with dark wood wainscoating and sandstone fireplace. Clearly the
intent to create a Mission style church was central to the design process of
the church and convent, regardless of the stylistic purity of the final
products. The intention of the Mission style church complex reflects Father
Hughes’s desire to make Holy Rosary a unique landmark in the city. His trip to
California underscores the extent to which he sought an authentic design yet
the choice of brick and sandstone walls instead of stucco tempered the Mission
style designs for Rochester’s climate and architectural context.
The church was estimated to
hold 750-800 people and the project was estimated to cost $60,000. Alongside
this new construction, a renovation of the existing church-school building to
be used exclusively for school purposes was estimated to cost $19,000. The
original church (then used by the school) was demolished and the rectory was
moved in order to accommodate the new building.
The parish continued to
grow, and by 1924 the school was overcrowded. Enrollment increased from 375
pupils in 1916 to almost 700 in 1924. An addition of six new classrooms to the
front of the school was constructed in the summer of 1924 in a style compatible
with the Mission church and rectory. In 1937, another addition of six classrooms
ameliorated further growth of the school’s enrollment.
The next major addition to
the parish complex was the expansion of the convent in 1946. In 1981, a
three-alarm fire destroyed the school building. It was reconstructed on site
but was not designed to match the style of the church and rectory. Holy Rosary continued to
serve the Catholic community in the area until March 2008, when the last mass
was held in the church.
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I can only hope that folks in Buffalo are reading along!
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