Grassroots effort to preserve Most Holy Redeemer grows with weekly vigils

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy

The grassroots effort continues to help save Most Holy Redeemer-Church of the Nativity on Third Street between Avenue A and Avenue B. 

A group of residents and parishioners once again held a prayer vigil outside the church on Friday evening at 7 — a gathering they plan to continue weekly at this time. (You can follow the Facebook group Save Most Holy Redeemer Historical Church here.)

Participants brought headsets and a small portable speaker that was fastened to the church gates. Prayer sheets were handed out, and the group recited a series of novenas.

The mood outside was a mix of reverence and frustration. Parishioners have expressed concerns that the Archdiocese has not been transparent about its future plans for this parcel, which includes the adjoining rectory. (That building belongs to the Redemptorists, not the Archdiocese, which had only been renting the space.) 

Several people also spoke about plans to attend the last Mass, held on Sunday, Aug. 31. Moving forward, Masses will be held at St. Brigid-St. Emeric on Avenue B. 

Fox 5 was also on hand with a camera crew to cover the scene. 

Village Preservation, along with the Lower East Side Preservation Initiative and the East Village Community Coalition, has launched a campaign to save Most Holy Redeemer, which has stood at 173 E. Third St. for more than 150 years. 

Outgoing District 2 City Council Member Carlina Rivera and leadership at the Tenement Museum have voiced their support for preserving the church.

Founded in 1844 by German-speaking Redemptorist missionaries and completed in 1851, the church was once among the tallest structures in New York. Nicknamed the "German Cathedral of the Lower East Side," it became a cornerstone of Kleindeutschland. It played a significant role in the city's religious, immigrant, and fire safety history — from introducing Gregorian chant in Catholic churches to pioneering the use of electricity for religious structures. 

Despite that legacy, Most Holy Redeemer, and preservationists warn that the building could be at risk. Village Preservation notes the Landmarks Preservation Commission has often failed to protect historic churches, synagogues, and other neighborhood sites of worship in recent years. 

For neighbors, the prospect of the steeple disappearing from the skyline after decades as a familiar presence is almost unimaginable. 

As the Facebook group states: 

Holy Redeemer is more than just bricks and stained glass — it's a cornerstone of our community's identity. Its architecture, history, and spiritual presence deserve to be cherished, not forgotten.

Find the petition about landmarking here.

Previously on EV Grieve: 

• At what may be the final Mass at Most Holy Redeemer

• At the prayer vigil for Most Holy Redeemer 

• Push continues to landmark East Village's historic Most Holy Redeemer 

• Most Holy Redeemer to halt regular masses this fall amid uncertainty about its future

• Up in the under-restoration belltower at Most Holy Redeemer

Monday's parting shot

An end-of-summer scene from the empty lot on Second Avenue and Second Street.

From apartment to curb: massive move-out on 9th Street

We received several reader reports about a move-out at 418 E. Ninth St., between Avenue A and First Avenue, where, seemingly, the entire contents of someone's apartment are now on the sidewalk out front.

According to a reliable source, the discard happened late last night. 

By this afternoon, the sidewalk had yet to be cleared, frustrating a reader who relies on a cane to help get around. 

Updated: Clean up!

Top photo by William Klayer; next pics by Steven. Thanks to everyone who submitted photos.

At what may be the final Mass at Most Holy Redeemer

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy

Yesterday marked the final scheduled Mass at Most Holy Redeemer-Church of the Nativity on Third Street between Avenue A and Avenue B, following word earlier this summer that the parish would close after Aug. 31. 

Inside the historic church — a fixture in the East Village for more than 150 years — there was no mention of the closure during the service I attended. Parishioners prayed and sang as if it were any other Sunday, even as the looming uncertainty hung heavy.

Afterward, a church employee approached me, offering a blunt explanation: "Monsignor Nelan is a very difficult man to deal with and he wants this church closed." The employee added, "It's not a matter of money, it's a matter of personnel. We have no priests! And they are transferring another one of ours to upstate." 

Parishioners are being directed to St. Brigid's on Avenue B for regular services. 

Church leaders cited a shortage of priests and the deteriorating condition of the building, including falling plaster, as reasons for the shift. 

Earlier this summer, church officials said that engineers would evaluate whether the church remains safe. (An employee of Most Holy Redeemer and St. Brigid attended the July 14 meeting and expressed skepticism about the timing of the engineering review, calling it "suspicious.")

The Archdiocese has not made a formal public statement about the closure.

Earlier vigils outside the church have brought neighbors and parishioners together, some calling on the city to protect the building through landmarking.

Village Preservation has urged action, noting the church’s deep ties to the East Village's German immigrant past and its role as one of the tallest structures in New York when it was completed in 1851.

For now, the future of the "German Cathedral of the Lower East Side" remains unclear.

August Citizen crime watch

A few reports from August appeared on the Citizen app...  Some are serious; others fall on the lighter side — whether for the wording ("people disputing") or the fact that someone actually went to the trouble of filing a police report. We include these not to poke fun, but to give a fuller picture of what gets logged in the neighborhood...

The song of the summer, 46 years later

As a vinyl enthusiast, I always see what's playing on the turntable at C&B Café, 178 E. Seventh St., just west of Avenue B.

Earlier this summer, during a coffee break, the needle dropped on Supertramp's classic 1979 album, Breakfast in America. 

The opening track, "Gone Hollywood," was playing while I waited inside. It stuck in my head and refused to leave, no matter what else I tried to put on repeat.

So, I've stopped fighting it and officially declared it the Summer Song of 2025.

It's just heartbreaking
I should have known that it would let me down
It's just a mind-aching
I used to dream about this town

 

6 posts from August

A mini month in review... with an end-of-summer look at the mucky tree well of Avenue A. 

• EVG Q&A: Darren Aronofsky on 'Caught Stealing' and revisiting the East Village of 1998 (Aug. 28) 

• At the prayer vigil for Most Holy Redeemer (Aug. 25) 

• Deliveristas confront new hurdles after 11th Street bike sweep (Aug. 20) 

• We talked with the owner of Corner Bistro about what to expect from the East Village outpost (Aug. 18) 

• The entire northern section of East River Park, including the running track, closes on Sept. 8 (Aug.13) 

• At the opening of Lidl on the Lower East Side (Aug. 4)

Reports: Early morning shooting injures 3 outside Lillian Wald Houses

The NYPD is investigating an early-morning shooting outside NYCHA's Lillian Wald Houses on Sixth Street near Avenue D. 

Police and media reports say three men standing outside the complex were hit when someone opened fire around 3:30 a.m.

EMTs took the victims — ages 35, 37 and 41 — to NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue, where they are expected to recover.

Police have not released a full description of the gunman. Tips can be shared confidentially with Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or online. 

Find coverage at: 

• The Post

• CBS 2

• NBC 4

• ABC 7

• PIX11 

• The Daily News

Screengrab via ABC 7/YouTube

Week in Grieview

Posts this past week included (and reading Steve Cannon's "Groove Bang and Jive Around" on 7th Street. Pic by Stacie Joy) ... Get the Week in Review via email every Sunday. Details.

 • EVG Q&A: Darren Aronofsky on 'Caught Stealing' and revisiting the East Village of 1998 (Thursday, Aug. 28) 

• Police looking for 3 suspects in Sunday afternoon slashing on Astor Place (Tuesday, Aug. 26)

• At the prayer vigil for Most Holy Redeemer (Monday, Aug. 25) 

• East Village musician Jesse Malin’s memoir, 'Almost Grown,' due April 2026 (Friday, Aug. 29) 

• Carlina Rivera officially steps down from her City Council seat (Monday, Aug. 25) 

• Gas service restored at C&B Café on 7th Street (Wednesday, Aug. 27) 

• How to contribute art to a memorial zine for the old East River Park (Wednesday, Aug. 27)

• IDLES pack into Night Club 101 for surprise East Village set (Saturday, Aug. 30)

• Openings: Mayberry Marketplace on 1st Avenue (Friday, Aug. 29) 

• Migrating warbler found dead outside Steiner East Village on 11th Street (Friday, Aug. 29) 

• Farewell to the East Village Rite Aid (Monday, Aug. 25)

• We like Puzzled Panther, one of the bands playing Tompkins Square Park on Sept. 7 (Friday, Aug. 29) 

• Sushi and coffee for the vacant storefronts at 106 Avenue B (Wednesday, Aug. 27) 

And it is jacket weather (photo by Stacie Joy)...

JFK Jr. and Carolyn Bessette’s infamous fight restaged in Tompkins Square Park

Photos by Stacie Joy 

The cast and crew for Ryan Murphy's series "American Love Story," which chronicles the love lives of JFK Jr. and Carolyn Bessette Kennedy, returned to the East Village on Thursday. 

The location: Tompkins Square Park, standing in for Washington Square Park, where the couple was seen in a very public fight in 1996. The crews restaged that here. (The Daily Mail has some fight pics from Thursday.)

Crews also brought in some early 1990s trash cans...

Why film in this neighborhood? Bessette reportedly lived in the East Village when she first moved to NYC in 1989. 

And here's Paul Anthony Kelly playing JFK Jr. in the series, due out on FX next Valentine's Day.

Small blaze quickly doused on Avenue A and St. Mark's Place

We received several reader reports yesterday of a fire at the Avenue A and St. Mark's Place entrance to Tompkins Square Park, which occurred early in the evening (6:45). 

We heard conflicting reports about the cause, with several people stating that it was the cardboard remnants from a small encampment that had been here.

While the small blaze drew some dramatic moments, it was put out with a fire extinguisher a minute or two before the FDNY arrived. 

Thanks to the reader for these pics!

Charlie Parker Jazz Festival keeps swinging in Tompkins Square Park

Photos by Stacie Joy 

Heading back to last Sunday for a few scenes from the annual Charlie Park Jazz Festival in Tompkins Square... where there was another appreciative crowd for this year's event.

This year's lineup included Bill Charlap and Dee Dee Bridgewater, Gary Bartz and NTU Troop, and the Jazz Gallery Allstars. 

We may be jazz novices, but we always enjoy the day in the neighborhood...

The festival, which started in Tompkins Square Park in 1993, holds a significant place in the jazz community. 

It takes place near or on Parker's birthday on Aug. 29. Additional dates were added in Harlem in 2000, further expanding its reach. 

Parker, who died in 1955 at age 34, lived at 151 Avenue B from 1950 to 1954. That residential building between Ninth Street and 10th Street is landmarked.