Check out this spectacular adaptive reuse of an old Roman Catholic church on the city's near East Side into an art gallery and studios. Their first show opens this Friday, December 9, featuring the work of Thomas Frontini.

 

Best photos are on these pages:

http://www.josaphatartshall.com/introduction/renovation.php/

http://www.josaphatartshall.com/gallery/

 

"Private classes, workshops and lectures are now being offered in the individual studio businesses. Included are stained glass, painting, web design, glass fusion and slumping."

 

Exact address: 1433 E. 33rd Street (St. Clair-Superior neighborhood)

Great project.  It is always hard to get the money to rehab these old churches.

I'm telling you, this is Cleveland's "next big neighborhood"!  That's a great old church, too.  I am assuming now that the neighborhood used to be an Italian area?  I didn't know that, if so.

It used to be croation, some sloveinian, kinda mishmash of eastern europe countries. I agree with you X, in that it will be clevelands next ethnic hotspot to live in

This area is already pretty well inhabited...but as more conversions take place, the population will continue to grow.  I agree, though, that the prospects for this part of town are just amazing!

 

Seeing this church succeed makes me wonder about the church on the south side of Detroit, between 58th and 65th (not sure of the cross street).  It's for sale on Progressive Urban and it fits so well into the neighborhood.  I really hope that it can be preserved and put to a creative new use like Josephat!

 

St Josaphat is located right around the corner from Slyman's Restuarant. The best corned beef in the city, IMHO. bear hugz.

 

Jim S.

 

Seeing this church succeed makes me wonder about the church on the south side of Detroit, between 58th and 65th (not sure of the cross street).  It's for sale on Progressive Urban and it fits so well into the neighborhood.  I really hope that it can be preserved and put to a creative new use like Josephat!

 

That church is still used by a number of small congregations -- Romanian Orthodox (which is what it was originally built for), Russian Orthodox and I think maybe a Latino Catholic congregation? Seems like whoever buys it should keep it available for those services -- it brings a great mix of people into the neighborhood.

I had heard that CPT has some plans to use that church for performance space, but if it is out on the market, maybe they aren't going to persue those plans.

Yeah, the church was going to be part of the Gordon Square Arts District, to be used as an acoustic music hall. It was dropped from the plan because the District had enough on its plate with the theater projects (Near West, CPT and the Capitol movie theater renovation).

Never got to post these before Christmas...

 

The historic warehouses of the neighborhood are visible beyond the church's rear: