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Summarized by Kent Larsen
Growing New York Stake Needs Expensive Real Estate
(For Houses of God, a Devlish Market)
New York Times 18Jun00 B1
By Nadine Brozan
NEW YORK, NEW YORK -- In the past few years, the sizzling economy has led to
a hot real estate market in New York City, doubling prices in just the last
four years. Churches in the city have been hit as hard as anyone, given
their specific needs, which often make it difficult to convert space from
other uses. And the growth of the LDS Church on Manhattan and in the rest of
the city makes the expense an immediate concern.
Currently, the 9-unit New York New York Stake includes just the
22.5-square-mile island of Manhattan. Six of the units are squeezed into the
Church's Lincoln Square tower, occupying 3 floors with two chapels in the
building. Two of the remaining three units occupy a beautiful new building
in upper Manhattan, and the last unit, the Harlem branch, meets in a small
building in Harlem, purchased from the Jehovah's Witnesses for $300,000.
But the stake is growing rapidly, doubling in the past 10 years. One ward is
expected to be split this summer, and a chinese program, already meeting in
a small space in New York's Chinatown, should be made a branch soon. And at
least two of the units currently meeting in the Lincoln Square building
could use buildings in their geographic boundaries, with some members taking
as much as an hour to travel to church on public transportation. In the
Stake's view, the Harlem building needs to be replaced, and two additional
buildings are needed, one on Manhattan's upper east side and another downtown.
But finding land to build on, or even acceptable real estate at all, is a
real challenge, says Richard Hedberg, the church's real estate
representative for the Northeast and parts of Canada. "It is especially
difficult in Manhattan. Land is so expensive, and everything has something
on it. Typically, you have to buy something, tear it down and build it back
up." And that is exactly what is planned for the Harlem building, according
to the Times.
New York New York Stake President Brent Belnap says that the building needs
to be in Harlem, where it is close to the members, "We have a large number
of members who live in the area, and we believe in taking the building to
the members," said Belnap. "It is a less than desirable building now, but we
are planning to build a temporary meeting house for four congregations on
that site and on a vacant lot next door that we bought that together are 50
feet wide by 100 feet deep." And having a meeting house in the community
allows the Church to reach out to others, "We have youth programs we feel
will bless the lives of the people of Harlem in a major way, from scouting
to basketball, along with programs to strengthen the family and assist
people in employment."
But finding the space can take a long time, and the prices are shocking to
those not familiar with them. "We have also been actively searching for
space for five years on the Upper East Side," President Belnap said.
Fortunately, attitudes among the Church's real estate officials seem to have
improved, "It used to be that they were concerned about price," he said.
"Now they know if we want members on the Upper East Side, we must pay
Manhattan prices - and that would be multimillions of dollars."
The Times' article also looks at the difficulties faced by other religions
in finding acceptable real estate on Manhattan. Only one of the churches had
little trouble, the Malcolm Shabazz Mosque in Harlem, which was able to
expand into nearby lots. But the mosque's spiritual leader, Imam Izak-el M.
Pasha, credit's the unique situation in Harlem for their success. "Harlem
has had a history of unfortunate circumstances so there were plenty of
vacant lots here."
And churches downtown have had a much, much more difficult time, including
the East End Temple, a Reform Jewish congregation which has been trying to
expand for the past 15 years. Helene Spring, the president of the temple
said that developers weren't interested in providing space for a church,
"Putting in a Gap or Duane Reade or whatever is worth more than a
synagogue," Spring said.
See also:
Various Times and Sundry Places
New York LDS Historian Spring00 D1
http://www.mormonstoday.com/nyc-lds-history/NYLDSHistorianV3N1.pdf
By Ned Thomas
[Requires Adobe Acrobat]
First Manhattan Chapel in 25 Years
New York LDS Historian Spring00 D1
http://www.mormonstoday.com/nyc-lds-history/NYLDSHistorianV3N1_Insert.pdf
By Anne Knight
[Requires Adobe Acrobat]
The Mormons Keep Watch Over Queens
Mormon News 1Aug00 D1
http://www.mormonstoday.com/990801/C5queensny01.shtml
By Kent Larsen
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