The fight to save Our Lady of Loreto Church, at the border of Ocean Hill and Brownsville, in Brooklyn, will continue on just a little bit longer. On Thursday, a Brooklyn judge temporarily blocked the planned demolition of the church to make way for affordable housing, the New York Daily News reported.
The judge’s ruling is a cause for celebration for local preservationists who have been campaigning for years to save the church, which was built in 1908, and is located at the intersection of Sackman and Pacific Streets.
After the church was closed in 2009, preservationists worked with the Brooklyn diocese to ensure that the church building was preserved and that affordable housing would be built on adjacent sites, also owned by the church.
That plan however fell through, and the organization leasing the site, the Catholic Charities of Brooklyn & Queens decided to move forward with its plan to demolish the church and build 64 affordable apartments. The CEO of the organization told the Daily News, that they received 5,000 applications when they initially opened the application process, which was proof enough of the strong need for affordable housing in the community.
The plan to repair and restore the church and make it an arts and community center was deemed to be too expensive, according to the Daily News, and Catholic Charities believes it is dangerous to leave the existing structure standing in its present state.
Plans to preserve the church however have the backing of Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams, and several local elected officials as well. Now it will be up to the court to decide on the future of this project.