BUFFALO, NY (WKBW) — As the Buffalo Catholic Diocese plans to shutter 78 parishes and worship sites, some parishioners are pushing to save their churches.
Preservation Buffalo Niagara and Fillmore District Common Council Member Mitch Nowakowski are working to help designate five churches as landmarks. But the Buffalo Common Council will need to approve it.
I bring you the voice of a parishioner at one of the churches they're hoping to preserve.
"I just feel like the blanket was ripped off of us, and it's very, very sad,” reflected Randah Hazzan, parishioner, St. Rose of Lima Church. “It breaks my heart. It really breaks my heart. We've been trying so hard.”
Hazzan has been a parishioner at St. Rose in north Buffalo for about 30 years. But now it's one of the 78 Catholic churches and worship sites the Buffalo Diocese will close and likely be put up for sale.
“It just breaks our heart, and this is our home,” Hazzan noted.
But now there is an effort underway to try to have this church preserved as a historic landmark.
"And I’m determined to never allow them to fall, crumble or not be used up to their highest potential. and that's really what the landmark status is,” stated Nowakowski.
The landmark applications for five city churches are before the Buffalo Common Council for consideration, but they were tabled by the legislation committee Tuesday.
Nowakowski tells me this will give them more time to make sure they notify everyone in the neighborhood of those churches to attend a public hearing on October 22.
"My argument is that when these are the structures of our landmark, it protects the architectural integrity of them,” Nowakowski explained.
The diocese sent me a statement saying it part it "does not oppose the effort to have our churches designated with landmark status" — but noted the "landmark designation will not deter the diocese from placing those churches that are merged and closed on the market for sale."
“These are architectural treasures that could never be replicated with the materials, the craftsmanship, and the hard work, and just like I got to grow up and see these beautiful structures be used. I want to see another 100 years will they be adaptively reused,” Nowakowski noted.
The common council is expected to vote on the landmark status on October 29. For now, it's one thing some parishioners hope could help the situation.
“We're not giving up. We're going to continue to fight what needs to be done,” Hazzan commented
