Will God Take Sides in Nasty Bay Ridge Church Demolition Fight?

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Fights about demolishing churches and turning the property over to the higher power of real estate development always take on that extra element that makes the battle a spectator sport. So it is with a 108-year-old church on Fourth Avenue in Bay Ridge at the center of an nasty fight. The congregation wants Green Church demolished so it can be replaced by condos and a smaller, new church. Local preservationists are ticked off and Bay Ridge's strong contingent of neighborhood blogs are all weighing in about wrecking ball versus salvation. The Bay Ridge Rover writes that "the tenuous existence of the structure has inspired an almost cult-like reaction among devoted preservationists." Left in Bay Ridge weighs in for preservation, saying the demolition would be the last straw in a neighborhood where bulldozers have been busy. And, Right in Bay Ridge, tries to make sense of it all, carefully laying out the arguments on both sides. Today's Daily News says a big civic coalition is trying to stop the tear down. The demo is supposed to happen by May and the Pastor has offered a piece of the demolished church as a souvenir to anyone that really likes it.
· Reverend: Let us tear down church [NYDN]
· A New Front Opens Over Bay Ridge's "Green Church" [Right in Bay Ridge]
· To Preserve or Not to Preserve [Left in Bay Ridge]
· A blogged week: 'please don't feed the civic activists' [Bay Ridge Rover]

[Photo courtesy of Right in Bay Ridge]

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