| ASU Diablo |
Apr 3, 2024 3:59 PM |
Former mayor ushers in reboot of historic Phoenix church as events, dining space
https://www.bizjournals.com/phoenix/...h-phoenix.html
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A royal poinciana tree has been sprouting at the western edge of the historic First Baptist Church in downtown Phoenix for the past decade.
For former Phoenix Mayor Terry Goddard, the tree, considered one of the most beautiful in the world with its bright red blooms, marked the beginning of his plans to restore the 45,000-square-foot church after the roof burned down and the building sat vacant for decades.
"It's a work in progress, very much so," Goddard told the Business Journal, referring to the abandoned church. "I've got my tree — 10 years ago I planted the royal poinciana in expectation that someday we'd get this fixed."
Goddard, also a former Arizona attorney general, has spearheaded efforts by nonprofit Housing Opportunity Center to turn the Italian Gothic-style church into a space for gatherings, events, dining and other creative uses since 2016.
He has wanted to preserve the church, built in 1929, since its roof burned down in the 1980s — during the second week of his first mayoral term.
Goddard: Discussions underway to add a restaurant
The tree now stands tall against the side of the aging structure as Goddard prepares to open the first phase of the project at the end of April. This includes a new catering kitchen and events that can now be booked for the open-air courtyard at the heart of the church.
The venue, easily recognized in downtown by its rose window and bell tower, is now known as The Abbey on Monroe, located at 302 W. Monroe St.
BTS Event Management and Fresh from the Kitchen have partnered to host weddings and other events in the courtyard. Several weddings have already been held and more are being booked for 2024 and 2025. A catering kitchen has also been built out.
Meanwhile, Goddard is in discussions with potential restaurant tenants to open a new eatery on the west side of the property with outdoor patio seating underneath the poinciana tree. The basement could also be turned into a speakeasy.
But the first phase is only the start of his vision for the maze of rooms scattered throughout the multi-level church.
Work crews have been adding steel beams and structures to support the building and installing tiles, floors, windows, glass and mahogany wood frames across the property.
The bathrooms have been upgraded and modernized, and a host of trees and plants have been embedded in the main courtyard. Goddard said they envision using some of the extra rooms such as the old classrooms as makerspaces or meeting spaces.
"A little side gig we've been able to do is fashion photographers," Goddard said. Photographers like the unique wall backgrounds, some of which were damaged in the fire. They're also planning to keep some of the graffiti left on the walls from decades ago.
At one point they considered turning some of the larger rooms into loft apartments, but at the suggestion of the Dutch architect that restored the Orpheum Theatre in Phoenix, Van Dijk, they kept the space for conference rooms.
"Except for hotels, you don't find any conference rooms of this size in downtown," Goddard said.
Building has seen several owners
As a nod to the history of the building, including the major fire that took down the Spanish-style roof decades ago, Goddard said they are preserving as much as possible and also adding touches such as a tribute to the firefighters.
"The firefighters did an amazing job," Goddard said. "Buildings like this don't have roofs collapse and then remain standing. Whatever they did kept the integrity of the walls and I don't know how they did it because the roof was huge."
After the church vacated the building in 1972 it was used by the Urban League for training through 1982. It was then acquired by an investment group headed by former Phoenix Suns player Alvan Adams, which had plans to turn the church into an adaptive reuse project until the fire, Goddard said.
Housing Opportunity acquired the building in 1992 and has owned it since. Goddard said restoration construction is estimated to cost about $10 million.
The main funder in the restoration project is Local Initiatives Support Corp., with assistance from the Arizona Community Foundation and Phoenix Industrial Development Authority. Bankers Trust will acquire the historic tax credits generated by the building.
The design partner in the restoration was architect Tempe-based Jones Studio, which Goddard credits for coming up with the idea for using the church as an events space in the 2000s. Palo verde trees had been growing in the empty, boarded-up courtyard for years since there was no roof.
"They got this idea that this would be a public space that was a garden in a room and that's sort of been the prevailing concept ever since," Goddard said.
Patry Building Co. was the general contractor for the redevelopment of the property. The Los Angeles branch of New York-based EverGreene completed three months of restoration work on signature pieces in the church such as the columns.
Goddard said they would have initially opened to the community several years ago but plans were delayed because of the Covid-19 pandemic. As downtown Phoenix builds momentum with thousands of new residential units coming online, Goddard believes now is the right time to open.
"It used to be in the evenings and weekends, these streets were empty and that's just not true anymore," Goddard said. "Back when I was mayor we were dreaming about a time when downtown Phoenix would truly be an urban, exciting space. It took 40 years to actually happen and it's happening."
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