LPC OKs church-to-residential conversion on 7th Street

The Landmarks Preservation Commission has approved plans to convert and enlarge the historic church building at 121 E. Seventh St., between Avenue A and First Avenue. 

As previously reported here, the proposal called for converting the existing structure into a mixed-use building with eight residential units (presumably condos), along with a two-story vertical enlargement above the current roofline and nearly 2,400 square feet of community facility space.

According to New York YIMBY, who first reported on the LPC decision, the redesign includes modifications to the entrance and windows, stepped gables along the roofline, and restoration work on the masonry façade, including the bell tower. 

The property is within the East Village/Lower East Side Historic District and requires LPC approval. 

The building has a long history, per Daytonian in Manhattan. No. 121 began as a house in 1843. In 1902, the Hungarian Reformed Church purchased the property and hired architect Frederick Ebeling to convert it into a church, adding a central bell tower characteristic of a Hungarian country church. The building was consecrated in 1903. 

In 1961, when St. Mary's American Orthodox Greek Catholic Church purchased the property, the congregation modernized the structure by encasing the original stone façade in "Naturestone," an artificial material — a change that preservationists have long lamented.

Here's what it looked like in 1910, nine years after people first declared the neighborhood "dead."

The church was most recently used by CityLight Church. 

The Carpatho-Russian Orthodox Greek Catholic Diocese sold the building for $2.8 million last June to an LLC, per city records. 

2 new stories and 8 residential units proposed for historic 7th Street church

There are proposed plans to convert and enlarge the historic church at 121 E. Seventh St. between Avenue A and First Avenue. 

As the property sits in the East Village/Lower East Side Historic District, the developer needs the approval of the Landmarks Preservation Commission. Tonight, Community Board 3's Landmarks Committee will hear about the proposal. (PDF here.) 

An overview: 

The project entails converting and enlarging the existing church to a mixed-use building. Proposed are 8 residential units within the existing structure, including a new two-story vertical enlargement above and a Community facility space at the cellar level. 

We are seeking support of a Certificate of Appropriateness for the vertical enlargement with proposed modifications to the entrance for the residences & community facility, windows at the street facade, restoration of masonry street facade & decorative arch trim at the window openings, stepped gable cornice replacement, cornice at the belltower roof, exterior lighting and modifications to the rear facade.

Last used by CityLight Church, the structure has been on the sales market. At the moment, we're unclear who owns the property. According to the CB3 website, the applicant is Garbo & Company, a real estate firm specializing in investing and operating real estate development. 

No. 121 started its life here as a house in 1843. 

Here's more history via Daytonian in Manhattan: 

...on May 10, 1902, The New York Times reported that the Hungarian Reformed Church had purchased the dwelling. The group hired architect and builder Frederick Ebeling to convert the structure to a church building. 

The building was consecrated in 1903. Within the next year, Ebeling extended church to the property line and incorporated a central bell tower characteristic of a Hungarian country church. The quaint little church had a comfortable overall charm. And yet there was little to hide the fact that this was a house-turned-church. 

In 1961, when St. Mary's American Orthodox Greek Catholic Church purchased the building, the congregation thought it a good idea to modernize the structure by encasing Ebeling's stone façade in "Naturestone," an artificial stone material.

It was not a good idea. 

Despite the offensive makeover, the little house-turned church retains its charm; a relic of a time when foreign-speaking immigrants drew together in a new land to worship together. 

And a look at it in the 1940s via the Museum of the City of New York ...

The Landmarks Committee meeting starts tonight at 6:30 at the Chinatown YMCA/Houston Street Center — 273 Bowery, classroom 1.