Muskego congregation reaffirms plan to tear down 118-year-old St. Paul's Lutheran Church

MUSKEGO - St. Paul's Lutheran's congregation again voted to allow its historic church to be demolished, pushing back against an opposition group that fell a few votes shy of its goal.

The 84-77 vote in favor of razing the 118-year-old church, on Janesville Road just east of Tess Corners Drive, seemingly finalizes the building's fate as St. Paul's leaders proceed with other priorities supported by the congregation as a whole.

What's unclear is whether an opposition group, which formed within months of a May 2022 congregational vote that likewise supported the church's demolition, will continue its efforts.

In a news release that followed Wednesday's vote, The Rev. Peter Panitzke, St. Paul's lead pastor, acknowledged the difficulty of the decision, but again pointed to the reasons church leaders felt the 1905 church building stood in the way of their Christian mission.

"Unfortunately, the building is in need of extensive repairs," the church said in a statement. "Because the building has remained relatively unused for 45 years, the congregation in May 2022 decided that the cost of preservation was not a wise investment of congregational resources."

Church leaders agreed to reconsider the matter

The 15-month debate was renewed in August with a second vote, a move that was granted after six members of the congregation asked for reconsideration of the original vote.

Panitzke, again pointing to a news release instead of answering questions individually, noted church leaders complied, but first included leaders' points in a series of internal articles and newsletters explaining their cost concerns, including an estimated $400,000 that would be needed to make the church building viable compared to a $160,000 demolition cost.

In addition, six forums were held during which church members were "encouraged to ask questions, discuss the issues, and share their perspectives." The forums repeated points that had been made prior to May 2022, when the original vote (38-14 in favor of eventual demolition) was cast.

The size of that vote total — just 52 members out of a 2,700-member congregation — was one factor in opponents' push for a second vote, some members said.

The number of eligible voters is uncertain. Under the church's bylaws, women are not permitted to vote on church matters.

The Aug. 9 vote tripled the turnout, in what church leaders described as "a very well attended voters’ assembly," with the same result.

Opponents presented alternate view

Despite the meetings and interchange, opponents sought outside sources and information to argue that the old church could, and should, be saved.

One of the key elements of their campaign featured a 50-page proposal by John Archibald, a former member of the church who now resides in Arkansas. The presentation, titled "A Proposal for the Preservation and Maintenance of the 1905 St. Paul's Lutheran Church," questioned certain cost estimates cited by church leaders and suggested alternatives to demolition.

Among those suggestions was establishing a foundation or nonprofit to maintain the 1905 church. The foundation could write grant requests to cover maintenance costs of the building, Archibald proposed.

The preservation campaign and Archibald's proposal were presented to church leaders, who addressed them in the open forums and newsletters, refuting several points and standing by their original conviction favoring demolition.

But Archibald, who only became aware after the fact of the initial 2022 vote, was disappointed church leaders took some of his information out of context, among other elements misrepresenting that weddings and community events as the main source of revenue. Their take on his proposal seemed to further divide the congregation, he said.

"This is all very sad to me because nobody wins when you try to force people to pick sides," Archibald said in an email. "This whole matter could have been handled much better without people trying to create divisions."

More to the point, church leaders simply don't want to hear any arguments supporting the 1905 church building's preservation, he added.

"I think the biggest reason the decision was made was that the church leadership structure didn’t take seriously that half of its congregation has the money and the ambition to save the 1905 church," Archibald said. "The Friends and their position never were treated with the respect they deserved.

Demolition date isn't certain, nor is continued opposition

What's next for the church? At the moment, nothing is certain.

In the recent news release, as had similarly been expressed 15 months prior, Panitzke indicated that no definite demolition date has been set for the tear-down of the church, which in 1978 was replaced by a modern, more spacious worship center and offices.

The leadership group reiterated that they plan to preserve some pieces of the church, though exactly what and how also isn't certain. A facilities and site planning team will "consider how to incorporate elements of the 1905 building in current and future facilities," the news release stated.

Church leaders also alluded to a call for unity to address other priorities.

"May God grant healing and unity within our congregation as we work together to accomplish the mission the Lord has given us: By every possible means we bring every person within our area of influence closer to Christ," the release said.

Whether the opposition to the demolition will relent is also an open question. But one leader in the effort, Cheryl Weise, who in earlier interviews had said some congregational members believe church leaders have pushed for demolition based on their own views and priorities, said Monday that the fight isn't over.

"In my opinion, the fight is not over," Weise said.

Archibald agreed, saying there is a legal path that supporters might take to force the issue: a clause in the deed in which Jacob Tess, whose family were early settlers at Tess Corners, that says if the church and cemetery are removed, the property would revert to the Tess family.

"Tess descendants were at the vote (Aug. 9)," Archibald noted. "They voted to save the church. They know about the deed. So again, I don’t think demolition is certain."

Weise also noted previously that support for the church's preservation is deep. She pointed to a community online petition, which eventually captured 950 signatures. However, a vast majority of those signing the petition were not members of the church. To date, neither the city of Muskego nor the Muskego Historical Society has publicly challenged the planned demolition.

Contact Jim Riccioli at (262) 446-6635 or james.riccioli@jrn.com. Follow him on Twitter at @jariccioli.

Editor's note: This story has been updated with comments from John Archibald and Cheryl Weise, who were unavailable by the story’s initial deadline.

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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Another vote, same result: Tear down historic Muskego church