Over the past few decades, vacant and underutilized churches have become a familiar sight in American cities.

In some cases, a congregation or a religious governing body – say, a Catholic diocese – will sell the church to developers, who then turn them into apartments, offices, art galleries, museums, breweries or performance spaces.

But what about churches in neighborhoods that aren’t doing well, areas that are less attractive to developers looking to turn a profit?

In Buffalo, New York, two empty Roman Catholic churches were recently converted – not into apartments or offices, but into other places of worship. One became an Islamic mosque, the other a Buddhist temple.

As an architect and historic preservation planner, I was drawn to this phenomenon. With the help of Enjoli Hall, who was then a graduate student at University at Buffalo, I interviewed those involved in converting the former churches.

With immigrant and refugee populations growing in post-industrial cities across the U.S., the conversion of vacant Christian churches into new places of worship can preserve historic architecture and strengthen burgeoning communities.

In Buffalo, a split between east and west
Buffalo has long been an immigrant gateway. From 1850 to 1900, the city’s population increased by over 700%. In 1892, over one-third of Buffalo’s residents were foreign born. Poles, Germans and Italians settled in the city, leading to a wave of church construction. In the 1930s, African Americans started migrating from southern US to the east side of the city.

But by 2010, the city’s population had dwindled to just over 260,000 people – less than half of what it was in 1950.

https://aidenpromotions.com/blog/a-new-solution-for-americas-empty-churches-a-change-of-faith/

judchuks20:
Over the past few decades, vacant and underutilized churches have become a familiar sight in American cities.

In some cases, a congregation or a religious governing body – say, a Catholic diocese – will sell the church to developers, who then turn them into apartments, offices, art galleries, museums, breweries or performance spaces.

But what about churches in neighborhoods that aren’t doing well, areas that are less attractive to developers looking to turn a profit?

In Buffalo, New York, two empty Roman Catholic churches were recently converted – not into apartments or offices, but into other places of worship. One became an Islamic mosque, the other a Buddhist temple.

As an architect and historic preservation planner, I was drawn to this phenomenon. With the help of Enjoli Hall, who was then a graduate student at University at Buffalo, I interviewed those involved in converting the former churches.

With immigrant and refugee populations growing in post-industrial cities across the U.S., the conversion of vacant Christian churches into new places of worship can preserve historic architecture and strengthen burgeoning communities.

In Buffalo, a split between east and west
Buffalo has long been an immigrant gateway. From 1850 to 1900, the city’s population increased by over 700%. In 1892, over one-third of Buffalo’s residents were foreign born. Poles, Germans and Italians settled in the city, leading to a wave of church construction. In the 1930s, African Americans started migrating from southern US to the east side of the city.

But by 2010, the city’s population had dwindled to just over 260,000 people – less than half of what it was in 1950.

https://aidenpromotions.com/blog/a-new-solution-for-americas-empty-churches-a-change-of-faith/

Its been long coming and Africa needs to brace up too