US VERSUS THEM

I read today on the Rover that the Green Church's cornerstone has been stolen. You can read more about the theft here or at the Brooklyn Paper.

But what I find disturbing is Pastor Emerick's quote -

“This is consistent with the attitude that has been directed towards us, but this is theft. We want it back. We want to keep it because it is ours.”

And he wonders why the community isn't crazy about him.

Instead of saying the cornerstone is a part of the history of Bay Ridge or the community, he instead made it about his congregation. Yes I know the cornerstone belongs to the Methodist Church, but it seems that the hurdle of the battle for the Green Church was"us" versus "them." The congregation versus the community. The preservationists versus the church.

The church is torn down. A new church, hopefully, will be built (along with some swanky condos). But still Pastor Emerick can't get passed the "us" versus "them" attitude. We all want that cornerstone to be a part of the new building. It is part of the history of Bay Ridge and of the Methodist church. But until Pastor Emerick can rise above the past (or his perception of the past) and talk and act as if he and the church are an actual part of the community, it will continue to be "us" versus "them."


Photo courtesy: The Daily News

TIME IN A BOTTLE

Time may not be on the side of the Committee to Save the Green Church, but if all goes well they'll soon have a time capsule.

According to my blind soothsayer source, a capsule is buried somewhere in or under the Methodist church. It contains an early history of the congregation and pictures of the original 1830 church, the second church on Stewart Avenue and the current-soon-to-be-pulverized church.

Reverend Emerick and the church's board of trustees had no idea it existed until just recently. Will they look extra hard for it? I hope so. I'm sure the congregation, the community, and local historic society's would all love to see what was buried so many years ago.

The church may not be able to be saved, but we have a chance to give life to the people who buried the time capsule. I've always felt that unearthing a time capsule gives immortality to the people who took the time to bury it.

UPDATE: The Brooklyn Paper has a more in depth article about the time caspule.

HYPOCRITES AND CONTRADICTIONS

I love these two quotes about the Green Church. The first is from January 24, 2008.

“The building (The Green Church) is falling down. It’s crumbling. The building is not safe.”

And then less than a month later, on February 14, 2008.

The Bay Ridge United Methodist Church lent its beautiful interior to the Guild for Exceptional Children on Feb. 11 for a concert fundraiser...Green Church pastor Robert Emerick even joined in with the musicians, playing tamborine.

Such a courageous fundraiser.

LOSS OF FAITH

It's a rainy day here in the Ridge and what better day to muse on the impending destruction of the Green Church.

I don't know Pastor Robert Emerick, pastor of the Methodist "Green" Church. I've never met him and know very little about him. What I do know of him is from the press. I could be angry with him but I think I'm mostly disappointed in him.

Pastor Emerick is a spiritual leader and a leader of the community, but from what I've witnessed he's been more divisive than a leader.

The battle for the Green Church has been particularly nasty. The preservationists and the congregants both must shoulder the blame. But I'm disappointed that a spiritual leader couldn't rise above it all. Emerick couldn't bring the two sides together peacefully. I'm sure he would say that he did try but the preservationists wouldn't cooperate. But being a leader isn't easy. If it was, everyone would be a leader. But I haven't seen Emerick possess any leadership qualities.

“It is none of your business, or anyone else’s” said Pastor Robert Emerick.

While technically this may be true, what we're talking about is a building that has been a part of this community for 108 years. Perhaps turning the church into a town hall or performing arts center would be for the greater good and not just the Methodists good.

“I have decided that I am not going to dignify this process with a response any longer,” Emerick said. “I am not happy with how the media has handled this, so I am not going to answer any more questions.”

Yeah, that's good leadership. Just shut down when things don't go your way.

Emerick was later quoted as referring to the remains as “only dust."

How very sensitive.

“The group is thinking of Bay Ridge in the golden age of its past. They’re appealing to emotions,” he said. “This is a small group of people who think of the old church in terms of the old little red schoolhouse.”

No, the people are thinking of it as a part of the fabric of the neighborhood.

“The building can’t be saved. The old stones can’t be restored. Saving it just won’t work,” said Rev. Emerick. “It would take millions of dollars to do the job. Even if that was successful, in a few decades we’d be raising funds again to save it.”

Actually, in the late 1990s, the church itself approached the Landmarks Preservation Committee for designation. A structural analysis was done and it was determined that the stone was the problem. Serpentine stone is porous and flaky. A firm came in and offered a few suggestions.

1. Replace the stone with a like stone. Replacing it with serpentine or a similar stone would be costly and in years we'd be right back to where we are now.

2. Replace it with some kind of tinted concrete or pre-cast stone. While this would structurally sound, the church would be ineligible for landmark designation.

When the church showed up recently on a realtor's website, listing the property for sale, this is what Emerick had to say.

"The preservationists are behind this buzz," said Pastor Emerick. "People have a tendency to see an assumption as a fact. The assumption is wrong, and so, then of course, is the so-called fact."

The ad was on Dakota Realty's website. When a reporter called, he was told the seller was Betesh, the man who purchased the property from the church. "Assumption?"

Councilman Gentile tried for a win-win situation. Not only was his offer turned down but Emerick demonstrated outside Gentile's officer, holding a sign that said

“Please Stop Hurting Bay Ridge United Methodist Church.”

It will be sad to see the Green Church destroyed. But what's sadder is the faith in Pastor Robert Emerick, a community leader, has been destroyed.

DEVIL'S WORK

The Devil is busy at work on the corner of 4th and Ovington.

My daughter and I walked past the Green Church today to see that demolition of the Methodist Church is nigh. Workers have started removing the 211 bodies that were interred at the church in 1901.

Pastor Robert Emerick once said “We are a competent religious organization and we know how to handle human remains.”

And look at how they're handling it. They put up a garbage bag wall so no one can see how well they're handling the human remains. I climbed a ladder to see this: a back-ho and some guy looking in a hole. Very very holy. Remind me not to have them handle my remains.

On the other side of the church was a man, who I think said he was a retired head of the NY Cemetery Regulation. He was there to make sure the bodies "found a final resting spot. They deserve that." Um -- this is the 3rd time they've been moved. How many times does a dead body have to be moved before it reaches its final resting spot?

But this guy didn't just make sure everything went smoothly. He also got into a shouting match with Dorcas Kimball's mother about who said what at a CB 1o meeting. I don't know who was right but this guy didn't know how to talk to a woman. "Jerk" does not begin to describe this guy.












So here's my guess as to what is going to happen, and remember, you heard it here first:

• The congregation will tear down the church (it's their contractual responsibility).
• Betesh (the new owner) will sell the property (he already has it on the market, and his company is a management company, not a developer)
• The new owner will not build a church on the property
• Betesh and Emerick will shrug and say they have no legal ground to force the new owner to build a church
• A butt-ugly condo will be built and the new owner will hire Betesh to manage it
• Gentile will say he did all he could do, even though the church hired lobbyist James F. Capalino and Associates and lobbyist George Fontas, who happened to run Gentile's 2003 election.
• Emerick, who is not planning on building the congregation, will miraculously be offered another job at another church with a congregation in double digits.
  

So you better get a good last look at the church. The way things are going, the bulldozers will come in under dark of night to tear down the church, just like some of Bay Ridge's other beautiful buildings have been torn down.

And when it's all said and done, Bay Ridge will be the sucker.

SHOULD IT STAY OR SHOULD IT GO?

I came to the Green Church Should It Stay or Should It Go Ball late and may have to leave before the dance is over.

I knew both the Preservationists and Rev. Emerick and the Congregation weren't getting along but I had no idea how bad it was.

I posted a great article (heavily slanted towards the Preservationists and condemning Rev. Emerick and the congregation) by Shavana Abruzzo about the fate of the Methodist Church and an equally great comment (equally as heavy condemning the Preservationists) from an anonymous writer.

The inevitable destruction of the church is sad to me. I think it's a beautiful work of architecture and would love to see it stand for another 108 years. (And God knows I'd like to be standing for another 108 years).

But what's sadder is how the fate of the church has become a divisive issue in my new community (we've lived here for a year). The two sides show no signs of being able to come together and talk about the issues at stake. (It also saddens me that there are two sides and not one community dealing with the issues).

And really, can you blame either side? Both have hurled insults at the other while firmly believing they are in the right.

But what is right for the community?

Maybe tearing it down is ultimately better for the community. The church could use the money to continue its outreach programs. (Maybe it's because I'm new here, but I haven't heard anything about what the church does for the community. And I mean details.)

Maybe preserving the church is the right decision. It could be turned into a community center or housing for senior citizens while the church earns revenue. (But I have yet to hear the real details on the offer Councilman Vincent Gentile and Con Ed made to this end)

Sadly I don't think we'll ever know what would be best for Bay Ridge since the community has been unable to come together on this hotly and fiercely debated topic. Both sides can blame the other for not coming together, but in the end we have no one to blame but ourselves.

Whatever the eventual fate of the church will be, hopefully we'll all learn from this Clash and not let a community be divided in the future.

TO PRESERVE OR NOT TO PRESERVE

Rover has posted quite the rant about preservationists, civic activists, and the infamous Green Church. And I think he hits the nail on the head when he writes -

Serious people who can find de jure solutions that put our community's shared truths (aesthetic, historical and infrastructural) on an equal administrative footing with those of developers'.
While, more importantly, recognizing a pragmatic and elemental truth in a compromise somewhere between an outright rejection of change, and unbridled development - with a watchful eye to beauty and utility.

Yes, the "activists" and politicians are up in arms about the fate of the Church and I think they should be rankled. I can't speak for anyone else but there are several issues that have me riled:

1. The Green Church comes right on the heels of the loss of three Victorians. The community was told by the Basile Builders Group that they were going to restore the Victorians and then they sneaked in under cover of night and tore them down.

2. Nearly three years ago, Congressman Vito Fossella created an “Over-Development Task Force” and even created a sub-task force to specifically study the Green Church, yet nothing has been heard from either - um - force.

3. The Preservationists and the Methodists have not come to the table since March to discuss options (and I thought the writer's strike was bad).

4. The Landmarks Preservation Commission has completely ignored the situation.

5. The possibility that a funeral home on 4th Ave. will be replaced with a seven-story condo complex.

Yeah, okay, number five seems a little out of place here but it has me riled and it comes back around soon.

6. The Methodists rejected a proposal from Gentile and the Con Edison Renaissance Housing Program yet I haven't seen what the details were of the proposal.

7. What seems like complete disregard of the community by Pastor Robert Emerick. (I hear he's a nice guy. Righty told me. But the Pastor hasn't come off too well in the press)

8. That freak chick from American Idol who's now getting more air time than she deserves.

Yeah, okay, number eight proves I need a life.

9. Where the hell has Marty Golden been during all of this?

It feels as if developers are coming in here with no regard for the community, for the aesthetics of the community, or for the community's infrastructure. We're being lied to and trampled on. I think the Green Church is a culmination of a lot of issues.

If The Ridge adds -- or what it feels like to me -- if The Ridge has thrust upon them fifty condos in place of the Church and a seven-story condo complex in place of a funeral home, who's going to come in and build new schools? Our schools are already overcrowded -

P.S. 170 Lexington School - overcrowded, so four classes are housed in trailers

P.S. 104 Fort Hamilton School - Unfortunately, the school grapples with overcrowding. Kindergarten classes, unable to fit into the main school, take place in a district building five blocks away. And middle school classrooms are too cramped to hold comfortably the 30 or so kids in each class.

P.S. 185 Walter Kassenbrock School - The school is overcrowded, with more than 700 children in a building designed for 500.

Who's going to come in and alleviate the new traffic problems? The new parking problems?

So, yes, Rover, we need a "compromise somewhere between an outright rejection of change and unbridled development."