Will Holy Spirit Church in Asbury Park get flattened or reused? Fate rests in court
ASBURY PARK - Holy Spirit Church was a community hub for Catholics in Asbury Park for 114 years. But the future of this historic landmark remains unclear.
The developer wanted to build residential units inside the closed church, which would include a public space featuring modern art from local artists. Then he proposed tearing it down to be replaced by homes, only to be rejected by the city each time. So now the question of whether the Gothic building will survive another century could depend on the outcome of a court case.
A court date will be determined when a judge assigns it. However the developer is hopeful there will be a settlement. City officials could not be reached for comment.
The historic Roman Catholic church is located on the northwestern corner of the intersection of Second Avenue and Bond Street, less than one mile from the Asbury Park Boardwalk. Existing structures on the 1.1-acre lot include the two-story church, a three-story residential building (the rectory) and a detached brick garage.
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The property was previously owned by the Holy Spirit Church, which was overseen by the Catholic Diocese of Trenton.
Joseph Hanna, co-founder and president of the current property owner Mountain View Development, said his desired project of preserving the church as part of a larger multifamily housing development would be "an artistic development that celebrates diversity," which would be important to Asbury Park.
"I would really love to see the community center aspect come to fruition. I think that (church) has been around and part of the community for well over 100 years, and for us to be able to bring that back to the community in a nonreligious aspect — but still something the community can utilize — I think is very important," Hanna said.
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However, in 2021, the City Council denied the developer's original concept to redevelop the church property by preserving the church building and constructing multifamily homes, saying the area was zoned for single-family homes.
Mountain View Development, a subsidiary of JLD Investment Group, then filed a lawsuit against the city in October of last year.
See a copy of the lawsuit at the end of this story.
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'This is what I wanted to see'
The developer held an open house this past February to give residents and former parishioners a look at rejected plans for the former house of worship.
Hanna told the Press during the open house that the company hoped to maintain the structure rather than tear it down. While locals often refer to the church as a local landmark and a historic structure, it is not officially designated as such and there are no restrictions or prohibitions to the development of the property.
"Originally it was going to be townhouses and 50 medium-income units with 20% affordable housing," Hanna said. "I wanted an artistic development that represented diversity. The architecture represents diversity; it is a completely modern building and a very opposing gothic building right next to it, merging together.
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"This was the original concept. This is what I wanted to see. This is why I bought the property. They said no," Hanna said. "As soon as we bought the property it was converted from an R2 to an R1 zone, which means it can no longer be a multifamily zone, it can only be a single-family zone."
So with no other option, he proposed tearing down the church and building six single-family homes in a plan that would fully conform with the city's residential zone, but was denied by the planning board in August 2022.
The planning board's denial of JLD’s application was "arbitrary, capricious, unreasonable, in contravention of the law, and not supported by the record," according to the lawsuit. As such, JLD is requesting that the court reverse the planning board’s "unlawful denial" and grant its application.
On Sept. 1 of this year, JLD Investment Group added the unlawful denial of their conforming application as well as subsequent damages since to their lawsuit against the city and the planning board.
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According to the lawsuit, for nearly three years, JLD Investment Group has pursued "a transformative development that would preserve a beloved landmark" in Asbury Park.
"Despite publicly professing their desire to preserve the church, the city and its elected and appointed officials have worked behind the scenes to derail JLD’s development plans and all but ensure the church’s destruction. Undeterred, JLD persisted," according to the lawsuit.
JLD was proposing to convert the church’s upper levels to seven townhouse-style units.
The church’s existing basement would be used for resident amenities, including a gym, a lounge and unit storage. The proposed neighboring building would offer 52 apartments, including 10 affordable housing units, as required by the City’s Affordable Housing Ordinance. JLD was also proposing a small retail/café space along Second Avenue, which was positioned to allow future patrons to view and appreciate the preserved façade of the church, according the lawsuit.
The revised concept plans also provided a variety of private and public open spaces that have been designed and situated to showcase the church’s architectural features, according to the lawsuit.
"Going back and forth with the city, they came back and told us they want to repurpose the building. They want to save the building but they don't want residential use inside the building," Hanna said.
He added "that is when we came up with the idea of basically a community center, which was a theater on the lower level."
"We were working with the Asbury Park Theater Company and on the upper level was going to be a boutique market place as well as the performing arts stage, as well as a fusion jazz-inspired restaurant and also the art gallery space," Hanna said.
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'It would be a shame to destroy it'
Marylou Wason, who lives a couple of blocks from the church and spoke to the Press during the open house, said "it is such a beautiful building it would be a shame to destroy it."
"My suggestion is to keep this building, with the stained glass, and create whatever they can with it," Wason said. "I don't care about the parking lot and the rectory and stuff. The condos, I don't see a reason not to put them there and just keep (the church) intact. It is unique."
Based on publicly available information and according to the lawsuit, Holy Spirit Church was organized in the late 1880s and the church building itself was constructed in the early 1900s. The church was designed in the Gothic Revival style and is recognized for its distinctive exterior architectural features like the stone façade, the custom stained-glass and the painted windows of its ornate interior.
For decades, the church served Asbury Park’s Roman Catholic community. However, in recent years, the parish confronted several challenges, including declining church attendance and financial difficulties, according to the lawsuit.
Holy Spirit School closed in 1980 due to low enrollment numbers. Then Holy Spirit Parish began to eliminate certain ministries. Most recently, in 2014, the Holy Spirit Parish merged with two nearby parishes to form the Church of Mother Mercy Parish.
After the merger, Mercy Parish retained and operated two houses of worship in Asbury Park; the Holy Spirit Church and Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church. In October 2020, Mother Mercy Parish announced that Holy Spirit would be closed and sold.
Representatives of the Mother Mercy Parish explained that they simply could not continue to financially support and maintain two separate churches and the only way for them to continue serving Asbury Park was to consolidate operations. Proceeds from the sale of the church will be used to make much-needed capital improvements to the Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church and the Our Lady of Mount Carmel School, according to the lawsuit.
Church services were last held on the property in 2021.
The Holy Spirit Church is currently vacant and pursuant to Roman Catholic faith restrictions can never be reconsecrated or used as a Roman Catholic Church again.
JLD lawsuit by Dennis Carmody on Scribd
Charles Daye is the metro reporter for Asbury Park and Neptune, with a focus on diversity, equity and inclusion. @CharlesDayeAPP Contact him: CDaye@gannettnj.com
This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Asbury Park Holy Spirit Church fate: landmark or NJ housing?
