Historic Catholic school being reclaimed

By ANN HAUPRICH- | Comments: 0 | Leave a comment

A Catholic school that pre-dates the founding of the Albany Diocese is being given a new lease on life by Habitat for Humanity.

Rev. John Kirwin, pastor of St. John's/St. Ann's Church in Albany, said the solid fieldstone structure has been leased to the non-profit housing agency for five years at a cost of $1 a year in exchange for upkeep of the building.

Part of the old school, which has been vacant for two decades, will be used as a warehouse for Habitat for Humanity building supplies.

Historic site

Joseph Rapp, Habitat for Humanity spokesman, said a marker on the front of an upper floor of the building gives a date that looks like 1813 -- meaning the school was constructed some 34 years before the Diocese was established. (Nearby St. John's Church, which is also vacant, bears a founding date of 1837. That parish merged with St. Ann's in 1978.)

"The old St. John's school building definitely has historic value," said Mr. Rapp. "Structurally, it's in pretty good shape."

Both he and Father Kirwin agree the main problem is that the former school building has suffered "the ravages of time" and being unoccupied for so many years. For example, the roof leaks and a number of windows have been broken.

Stabilizing

Mr. Rapp said Habitat for Humanity's first priority is to "stabilize and secure" the structure.

"That entails emergency repairs to the roof and windows as well as other measures to make the building secure," he noted. "At the same time, we're working on the construction of a warehouse in what was the old school gymnasium."

"A big plus" from his organization's perspective is that the ground floor gymnasium is isolated from the second floor where classrooms were once situated and that the windows are already grated.

"Security is important to us since our former warehouse on South Pearl Street was broken into in 1996," explained Mr. Rapp. "At that time, we made an appeal for a better storage space. We heard from Father Kirwin through Sister Betsy Van Deusen [CSJ, administrative director of St. John's Center], who is a Habitat for Humanity committee member."

Preservation

Habitat for Humanity took possession of the historic school last month, with plans to preserve -- rather than to renovate -- the structure.

"It would be wonderful if we could restore it, but financially, that's not an option right now," stressed Mr. Rapp. "We've only got a few thousand dollars to spend on materials for repairs and the construction of the warehouse this year, so we will be limited in terms of what we can do."

Mr. Rapp is hoping for "$5,000 worth of volunteer labor" from the community. He is especially eager to hear from those who are skilled as stonemasons, carpenters, plumbers and electricians.

"This project can help build an even stronger bridge between the Catholic Church and Habitat for Humanity," he said.

Hopes for future

Mr. Rapp said the fact that the building is approaching its 200th birthday and that is situated in a historic district of the city makes him optimistic that it may one day be more extensively restored.

"There could be places where money might be made available in the future to do restoration work that would cost more than our budget allows," said Mr. Rapp.

He hopes the non-profit housing organization will one day be in a position to purchase the structure, especially in light of the fact that Habitat for Humanity does a lot of work in the geographic area served by the Albany Diocese.

"Last year, we built three houses in Albany, and we're scheduled to build another eight in Albany this year. Location-wise, this is perfect for our warehouse."

(Anyone who would like to lend a hand in securing and stabilizing St. John's School is welcome to stop by any Saturday between 8 a.m. and 3 p.m.)

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