On East Pearl Street, A Resurrection

by Allan Appel | November 2, 2009 7:18 AM | | Comments (15)

nhidios%20004.JPGepearlm.pngThe oldest congregant was replacing tile on a floor adjacent to the water-damaged sanctuary. The pastor’s wife scraped paint. Another congregant was refitting a donated stove.

Meanwhile a crew of daredevils on the steep roof 40 feet above were re-shingling and assessing how to seal a leak in the towering steeple through which water has been pouring for months.

nhidios%20012.JPGWelcome to an ongoing labor of love and historic preservation unfolding in Fair Haven.

On Friday afternoon, Pastor Hector Rivera and his congregants were busy transforming the old Methodist Church on East Pearl at Exchange into the new home of the Iglesia De Dios Pentecostal.

“This is blessing for the community, the city, and the Lord,” said Rivera. (He pointed out the recipients of the blessing in his statement should probably be in reverse order.)

Rivera said his congregation established in New Haven eight years ago in rented rooms. Its new home is to be in one of the city’s historic structures, a fragile 1871 gothic beauty that was badly in need of rescue.

After renting space first in the Hill and most recently on State Street at Ferry, Rivera and his congregation determined to seek a home of their own. Church member Martiza Rosa said the search began in April last year and eventually brought her to East Pearl Street.

There, the Methodist Church was experiencing severely declining membership. The building had in effect been vacant six months. Water damage was ongoing, as there was no money to fix the roof. Every time it rained, a torrent of water ran through gaping holes in the steeple curdling large sections of the plaster walls below.

“They were down to only six or seven members,” said Rosa. “They hung on, even as the building seriously declined.

Renting was not possible, because the church was thinking of selling its building.

The Pentecostal congregation, meanwhile, was not necessarily looking for a historic church building. But when Rosa heard rumors that the church might be sold to a developer for condominiums, she and Rivera rushed to make an offer.

It was accepted. “Because of its history, we are proud to be here,” said Rivera (pictured on the ladder, flanked by Rosa and congregant Joe Rivera, pictured at the top of the story).

Then the daunting dimension of the task met the congregation, which numbers 120 people, including children. The building cost $350,000. A downpayment was raised and made, and a mortgage secured. The congregation then raised an additional $118,000.

nhidios%20003.JPGThat’s the precise price tag alone for the repair of the massive roof and, it appears, a rebuilding of the steeple, which is an area visual icon. The roofing job commenced two weeks ago and will conclude in four more.

As the pastor, Rosa, and other church leaders gave a reporter a tour of the interior, it was apparent that at least another ten people, all church members, were at work painting, scraping, laying flooring, redoing kitchens.

They’ve been doing this day in and day out since the closing two weeks ago. Nearly every member has been contributing sweat equity, according to Rivera, including his wife Ivette, who was scraping paint off the repainted glass doors in the kitchen.

nhidios%20009.JPGOne could see why it was a labor of love: The main sanctuary, with its soaring wooden gothic arches, is a moving spiritual interior space, perhaps one of the most impressive, and least known, in New Haven

Because the church is in the Quinnipiac Historic District, all the work, including the types of shingles being hammered into the roof, is being done with the involvement and approvals of the Historic District Commission (HDC).

“We want to restore [the interior] to its original splendor,” said Rosa.

That’s going to take a lot money that the small congregation has yet to raise.

Once the roof is secured, next the water damage must be tackled. The director of the Spanish American Merchants Association (SAMA), Frank Alvarado, who is advising the congregation, estimated that $200,000 remains to be raised to finish the interior work.

nhidios%20011.JPG“We’re looking for volunteer architects to redo the bathrooms, including making them handicapped accessible,” he said.

In December the church goes before the HDC and the Board of Zoning Appeals to discuss how to redo the adjacent parking lot. Rosa said that David Barone, City Plan’s liaison to the HDC, suggested that, given Fair Haven’s riverine history, oyster shells might be appropriate. The church would love to do that but only if someone could donate the oyster shells, Rosa replied.

The dark wood interiors with their crocket columns and the ribbed vaulting of the main sanctuary ceiling are in tact and very much in the spirit of a gothic cathedral; or, to bring it closer to home, the wooden superstructure of a ship’s hall turned upside down.

Rosa, who works as an assistant principal the Roberto Clemente Academy, suggested that might have been because there were mariners in the original congregation.

nhidios%20001.JPGOf the church, Anstress Farwell, of the Urban Design League, said in an email message: “It’s a gorgeous place. Last time I was inside was about 7 years ago. Shabby then, but beautiful and largely intact.”

Elizabeth Mills Brown, in her seminal New Haven: A Guide to Architecture and Urban Design, described the 1871 East Pearl Street Methodist Church as “a local sally into Victorian Gothic that achieves a quite awesome effect.”

Pastor Rivera said he hoped to hold the first services in the restored church within four to six months.

For those interested in assisting, tax deductible contributions can be sent to Iglesia De Dios Pentecostal at 99 East Pearl St. Donated labor of architects and other skilled craftsmen is also needed. Call Martiza Rosa at 415-2812.







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Comments

Posted by: Neighborhood resident | November 2, 2009 8:07 AM

Those of us who live in the neighborhood are happy that this gorgeous building is being fixed. However, some consideration to the residents of the neighborhood is due. Work on the roof last week started early in the morning, including Saturday and the loud repetitive banging woke up a bunch of folk living in the streets close to the church. While the pastor says that services will start in 3 months, there was a service yesterday afternoon and the sounds of loud music and preaching could be heard all the way from the Quinnipiac River Park. Not a good way to make yourself welcome.

Posted by: Frank Alvarado | November 2, 2009 8:44 AM

Thank you to the Independent and reporter Allan Appel for writing this story, just a clarification, Maritza Rosa is an Assistant Principal at Roberto Clemente Academy and Frank Alvarado is the Director of the New Haven office of SAMA.

[Note: Thank you. Corrections made.]

Posted by: JackNH | November 2, 2009 8:50 AM

Pentecostals are loud. That's what they're about. The neighborhood will have to get used to it, sorry to say. I'm more worried about a rehab project that stops mid-stream for lack of funds. Good luck to them.

Posted by: DEZ | November 2, 2009 8:51 AM

I am so happy that this church will remain a place of worship. It is a magnificent gem and I look forward to watching the transformation. I'm sure the neighbors will get used to the sounds of an active church. Are the bells in the tower operable? A small aside would be a desire to see the steeple flood-lit in the evening. Fair haven has magnificent churches whose steeples remain dark at night. How dramatic if they were all lit as beacons in this historic neighborhood?

Posted by: Oh Please | November 2, 2009 9:29 AM

Dez:

All well and good for you to be rooting for loud noise, church bells and a lit church all night. Very laissez faire of you, which says to me that you don't live in the neighborhood. Why don't you take the church and move it to your block? A little sensitivity -- on your part and that of the pentecostals would go a long way.

Posted by: HH | November 2, 2009 10:38 AM

Oh Please,

DEZ does in fact live in the neighborhood. If you were engaged in the neighborhood, you would know him and the work he had done in the community! As another community member I would think you would rather have the church remain as it is instead of continuing to degrade further, adding to the blighted buildings around.

As far as the "noise" you refer to...how about waiting to see? How about engaging the people who bought the church?? If you start off so negative you can never see the positive in this. Its a beautiful building that will now get the TLC (hopefully!) many of us in the neighborhood have wanted for it.

I, for one, even me with my cynical views of religion, would rather hear church singing rather than the base/loud music from the cars every day.

And yes, I agree, sensitivity would be great...even from you.


Posted by: streever | November 2, 2009 10:45 AM

I lived across the street from a church with a beautifully illuminated steeple--it wasn't excessively bright & it never bothered me, it was less bright than a good moon, which in Summer hovered just to the side of the steeple as I went to sleep. Check it out--it's on Edwards Street--I can almost guarantee you none of the neighbors mind it.

Obviously you don't want indiscriminate lighting but it is a very nice effect (and I say this as a non-christian) that I personally liked.

As for the loud service, many pentecostals have a service at 7 & one at 11--smaller churches have only one at 10--why not talk to the church if you are in the neighborhood? Government is not going to dictate the hours of assembly of religion, but I'm sure that a community-based neighborhood church would understand it's neighbors desiring to sleep past 7 am.

Posted by: Oh Please | November 2, 2009 11:02 AM

Thank you, Streever for your great suggestions and your sensitivity. As for HH (aka Dez), hard to tell whether or not you are involved in the neighborhood since the names you listed sound like graffiti tags. The names Dez and HH are not once associated with active and engaged Fair Haveners.

Posted by: DEZ | November 2, 2009 12:33 PM

OH PLEASE, you kill me, as I chuckle in my bourgeois way! Graffiti tags? I love it! Does that give me 'cred?? DEZ are my initials. Ask around on East Pearl if you are so involved and you may even get an invite to my and HH's home, she is my wife, and no we have never tagged anything in our lives (except each other ;) If you at least used your initals, and were active, then you would know me and maybe we could have a face to face chat. Now back to the issue at hand. The church. It is a plaqued, historic structure which has been in decline for years and now has a vibrant community behind it and I wish them well. Construction won't last forever and maybe a little inclusivity on your part would do you some good. In its heyday I'm sure the pipe organ blasted notes three services per Sunday to the sound of warbling choir. Streevers sensitivity? Always refreshing. (Hey Streever!) In case you haven't noticed, the market decline has some very important Fair Haven development projects in limbo. This is one group that I would welcome to continue a tradition of worship in an otherwise blighted gem of a church. Sorry you thought that the empty, silent, blighted church was good for Fair Haven. That simply isn't the case.

Posted by: Future Member of the Congregation | November 2, 2009 4:15 PM

Hello to all! Our congregation is overjoyed with the purchase of the beautiful structure located at 99 E.Pearl Street and our main goal is to restore it to its natural splendor.

We understand that the fixing of the roof may be causing unwanted noise. Please note: We have contacted the contractor. Unfortunately they are on a timeline and in order to fulfill commitments with other contracts they need to adhere to the current schedule. Please accept our apologies for any inconvenience this may cause in the interim.

Our schedule is as follows:
Tuesday @ 7PM Prayer Service (not noisy)
Thursday @ 7PM Bible Study (not noisy)
Sunday 2PM to 4PM - Since the sanctuary is under construction - we are holding service in the back rooms. This is one of the main reasons why the noise level may be so high. We will ensure to close all doors (one may have been opened during Sunday's service)during our time of worship to limit the noise.

We do welcome all comments and suggestions and want to be an integral and active part of your community.

Please note: If you would like to pay us a visit to chat about any suggestions or even just to see the work we are doing inside please visit us during the hours listed above and ask for Joe Rivera (Financial Advisor in Charge of the Remodeling Project)or Maritza Rosa (Advisor)

God Bless You All!

Posted by: NEIGHBORHOOD RESIDENT | November 2, 2009 6:12 PM

A big thank you to the Future Member of the Congregation for your thoughtful response. Welcome to the neighborhood!

Posted by: ms.mary | November 2, 2009 7:11 PM

I know your church will bring new life and love to the building.Good wishes and God bless

Posted by: anon | November 2, 2009 10:58 PM

This is a beautiful building.

Posted by: robn | November 3, 2009 8:26 AM

The New Haven noise ordinance limits construction, demolition work, blasting and the use of domestic power equipment to the hours of 7am until 10pm Monday through Saturday and from 9am until 9pm on Sundays.

All noise is limited to a level not to exceed 55 decibels – roughly the sound of a clothes dryer or microwave between the hours of 7am and 10pm Monday through Saturday (or 9am through 9pm on Sundays) and a maximum 45 decibels from 10pm until 7am throughout the week.

Nice to see such a nice structure being fixed up.

Posted by: I've Lived Next to Construction Many a Time... | November 3, 2009 1:30 PM

And I'm pretty sure there's not a nail gun, jackhammer, or circular saw - heck, a lawn mower - on the market that is quieter than a microwave.

Noise ordinances are written with selective enforcement in mind. 55 decibels isn't very loud at all. If work is starting before permitted, that's one thing, but complaining about construction being above 55 decibels is unlikely to get results.

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