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December 28, 2002 Restaurant? Dance club? Museum? Possibilities for Old Dutch Reformed Church explored By Ben Montgomery Times Herald-Record bmontgomery@th-record.com Newburgh – What do you do with a 167-year-old church? That's what the Newburgh Preservation Association is asking. In order to raise money to restore the old Dutch Reformed Church that sits high above the beautiful Hudson, the association must first decide how the church is going to be used. Should it be a restaurant? A dance club? An arts center? An architecture museum? That's one weighty decision. The Dutch Reformed Church is the only Greek Revival church by renowned 19th-century architect Alexander Jackson Davis that still exists. And with a few exceptions, the church is almost as Davis designed it in 1835. Revived by the church's recent designation as a National Historic Landmark and a $15,000 grant to begin the renovation, the group of local citizens has secured the help of a renowned architecture firm from Albany that has restored many historic landmarks, including Thomas Jefferson's Monticello. The firm submitted a list of prioritized repairs, but much of the renovation also depends on what the group wants the church to be. The estimated cost of renovation is more than $6 million. Most recently, talk was of using the basement space as a Greek Revival architecture museum. The thought is that a museum of that nature would generate a flux of tourism in the city, because it would be the only one of its kind in the area. The Newburgh Preservation Association also wants the church to generate enough income that it can be self-sustaining. Does that mean renting it out for weddings and concerts? Does that mean renting space in the basement for a day-care center? Does that mean creating the Newburgh Lycian? "The greatest challenge is not raising the money to restore it, it's raising money to sustain the viability," said John Mesick, one of the architects. One thing's for sure: there's no hurry. The Newburgh Preservation Association isn't rushing into a decision. It wants to hear from city residents before it decides the church's future. 40 Mulberry Street * PO Box 2046 * Middletown, NY 10940 Telephone 845-341-1100 or 800-295-2181 outside the Middletown, N.Y., area. Powered by THRNewMedia.com
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