Save the Civil War Era Church

                                Petition for Ohio City Residents opposing
                                            the proposed demolition of 
                 Foursquare Gospel Church and the Century Home on Carroll Avenue

Whereas, the Foursquare Gospel Church , located at West 32nd Street and Carroll Avenue is recognized as part of the Cleveland Landmarks District and eligible for the National Register of Historic Places;

Whereas, the Church built in 1863 is among a handful of structures in the City of Cleveland built during the Civil War;

Whereas, the church's first congregation estabilished in 1848 predates St. Ignatius by 40 years       (1848 vs. 1888);

Whereas,, the church is Ohio City's 2nd oldest extant house of worship;

Whereas, St. Ignatius High School has announced plans to purchase and demolish the recently vacated church and century home on Carroll Ave. to make way for a (41) surface parking lot in a residential area;

Whereas, the demolition of the historic church and century home on Carroll Ave. would amount to a barely 12% increase of already existing St. Ignatius controlled parking spaces;

Whereas, the Ohio City Community has in the past, in the spirit of cooperation with St. Ignatius sacrificed multiple historic structures and provided plots and other structures north and south of Lorain in lieu of preserving these multiple structures;

Whereas, the church property proposed for demolition is part of the vanishing historic building stock in a section of Lorain Avenue neighborhood where 75% of the historic structures have been demolished in the past 40 years alone, many replaced with paved and unpaved surface lots, all of which diminish the sense of place of the historic area.

Now therfore be it resolved that we, the undersigned request St. Ignatius in recognition of the Ohio City neighborhood's long standing cooperation with and many contributions to the school, comply with the following:

1.      That St. Ignatius immediately seek alternative solutions to reduce or accommodate its internal demand for parking spaces and develop a long range plan to implement these solutions.  This community assisted St. Ignatius in developing such a plan in the past and should participate in present planning;


2.      That St. Ignatius place a moratorium on the acquisition of neighborhood dwellings and structures for demolition and conversion to parking space;


3.      That St. Ignatius explore promoting greener transport strategies (e.g. car pooling, public transportation, driving restrictions) for its student and staff to reduce single-occupant vehicle commutes and create a community dialogue among students, faculty, parents and neighbors to address this issue;


4.      That if St. Ignatius purchases the property at Foursquare Gospel Church that it will not demolish the historic church or it’s adjacent parsonage, or the Carroll Avenue Century home;


5.      That alternative uses for the Church and the century home be considered with input and coordination by all stakeholders.

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