Weeklong Deconstruction Begins on St. Francis' Steeple
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — It will take about week to "deconstruct" the steeple on St. Francis' Church.
Demolition on the decaying structure began first thing Monday morning with the removal of the gilded copper cross atop the spire.
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield confirmed its removal will take the rest of the week, to be followed with demolition of the entire church structure. The rectory facing Union Street will not be touched.
A crane arrived on Sunday and a two-man crew spent hours in a bucket on Monday hanging over the 182-foot spire removing its shingles and exterior sheathing by hand with hammers and prybars.
In an interview with iObserve.org, the diocese's life safety consultant Bob Kirchherr said the methodical work was being done because of the unknown condition of the building.
"We don't know what is structurally sound," he told iObserve. "It's all rotted on the inside."
The razing of the city's oldest Catholic church was set into motion last Thursday when maintenance workers reported that bricks had fallen off the south side of the church. A section of bricks between two windows in the bell tower fell onto a roof below, damaging it, and onto the church lawn and North Church Street.
Further inspection by engineers hired by the diocese uncovered "serious structural problems," including signs of failure in the buttresses that would compromise the lateral support for the walls of the church.
Fencing began going up around the church on Friday and, after meeting with city officials late Saturday, it was determined to block off a 200-foot area around the church. That forced the closure of Village Pizza and evacuation of that building and the Flatiron Building on Eagle Street. (Village Pizza is being allowed to provide delivery service only beginning normal hours on Tuesday.)
Eagle and North Church streets are closed until further notice. Officials said there was no danger to Colegrove Park Elementary School, which is outside the 200-foot collapse zone, but that the school was notified.
"[The diocese] contacted us and we assembled our team and went out there and set barricades and set up a perimeter for the collapse area," said Fire Director Stephen Meranti. "The contractors have been there today and set up fencing to enhance the perimeter. ...
"They're working to disassemble the spire. They're not coming in with a wrecking ball ... they're going to disassemble the top portion of it and evaluate it as they come down."
The diocese and contractors have been coordinating with the Northern Berkshire Regional Emergency Planning Committee, which is made up largely of public safety officials and the North Adams Ambulance Service.
"We're working with our team and the diocese to make sure this is a safe outcome," Meranti said. "We are going to try and focus on getting businesses and residents back into their buildings but it has to be done safely."
The church was closed in 2008 as the local parishes consolidated; its condition factored into the decision to condense the city's parishes into the newer St. Anthony's Church, now St. Elizabeth of Hungary. Several items from St. Francis were relocated there, including a statue of St. Francis and the stained-glass window depicting his image.
The demolition of the 150-year-old church is considered a major loss for a community that's touted itself as "the Steeple City." Mayor Richard Alcombright once likened it to "knocking a front tooth" out of the city's skyline.
The church and attached rectory — together at about 30,000 square foot — has been on the market for years but no entity came forward with a plan for reusing the church. CVS several years ago indicated interest in the property but planned to demolish the church and build a box pharmacy.
But pushback from citizens, including a demolition delay enacted by the Historic Commission and City Council, slowed those plans, and the mayor found he couldn't support it even after the company put forward the idea of setting the steeple on the ground somewhere.
The cross taken down Monday will be donated to the North Adams Historical Society and the bells to St. Elizabeth's if they can be safely removed. The diocese will determine how and if bricks from the building can be taken by parishioners as mementos.
Tags: church, demolition, st francis,
