NORTHAMPTON — After a long-running battle over a landmark city church, the Rev. Francis Reilly said Tuesday St. Mary’s of the Assumption Church and adjacent properties will soon be up for sale.
The Catholic church at 3 Elm St. — presiding over downtown from its position near Smith College — is part of the St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish.
“We’re certain they’ll go on the market,” Reilly said Tuesday, referring to the former church property, that of the neighboring rectory and the parking lot. “I’d say as soon as possible.”
Reilly said the decision was part of a parish-wide push to think critically about the future of the community and of five properties associated with it.
In 2010, the Springfield Diocese decided to close several churches and consolidate five Northampton parishes into one. St. Mary’s and St. John Cantius on Hawley Street closed at that time.
“There was a lot of emotion involved with the consolidation of so many parishes,” said Mark Dupont, the diocese spokesman.
The Blessed Sacrament Church at 354 Elm St. was recently closed temporarily as the diocese looked into suspected mold in the building, but Reilly said tests came back negative and Masses resumed this week.
Two other churches in the Northampton parish also remain active: Chapel of Our Lady of the Annunciation in Florence, and the former Sacred Heart Church at 99 King St., now known as St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish.
“We’re trying to make decisions about how we’re going to use our properties and how we’re going to get more people to come to church,” Reilly said. “We need to reach out to them in more creative ways.”
The pastor said people dying, people moving on and rising costs contributed to the Catholic community’s dwindling numbers and subsequent need to sell properties. Still, he said, the three churches can serve as a beacon of hope in trying times.
“More people will realize they can’t do it on their own,” he said. “They need God’s help.”
Some in the community fought to keep St. Mary’s an active church, appealing to the Vatican to overturn the decision to close it. The Vatican instead upheld the decision in May of last year.
Slated for sale by Colebrook Realty, the church will likely chart a new course. Some have remarked the building has great acoustics and could function as a concert venue.
“We’re just talking about what we’re going to do to market those properties,” Reilly said.
Amanda Drane can be contacted at adrane@gazettenet.com.