Church needs street for expansion

WILLIAMSBURG — A building project for St. Mary’s Catholic Church will require the City of Williamsburg to vacate Penn Street north of the church.

A site plan created by Bray Architects shows a new addition on the north of the Catholic Church at 102 E. Penn St. The addition will extend into the current street between the church and the parking lot for St. Mary’s Community Center.

The plans are very preliminary, said Jon Degen, a member of the church and its building committee. Plans have not yet been approved by the diocese or by parishioners.

Preliminary plans place the addition at street level, making it handicap accessible. The proposed addition includes a meeting room and office, gathering space and coffee bar on the lower level, according to a drawing by Bray Architects.

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Penn Street at that location would become part of the church parking lot and would provide handicap spaces next to the addition, said Degen. Right now the handicap spaces are in the parking lot across the street.

An elevator would take parishioners to the upper level that will connect a vestibule to the nave.

To make the plan work, the church needs Penn Street closed so it can build the addition where the street is.

The city proposed vacating the street along the entire block between South Highland Street and Franklin Street.

During a public hearing June 10, Laura Sinn, who lives next to the church, at 106 E. Penn St., asked the city council how vacating the street would affect her. Though her driveway is on Franklin Street, the front of her house faces Penn.

Sinn said she appreciates what the church is trying to do for its members, but she doesn’t want to lose parking in front of her house, and she doesn’t want to have to remove snow in the winter.

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Snow removal would be the responsibility of the church if the street is vacated, said City Manager Aaron Sandersfeld.

Degen said the church doesn’t object to the city vacating only the portion of the street in front of the church, but the city proposed vacating the entire block.

“I think it makes it cleaner,” Sandersfeld said.

The situation is the same as what the city did for Brothers Market at Walnut Street, said Sandersfeld. People still drive through there to reach Highland Street even though it’s now a parking lot, Sandersfeld said.

“My main goal was just to get people in and out of church safely,” said Degen.

Council members seemed ready to approve the vacation until they discovered that Sinn’s house faces Penn Street.

“I didn’t realize the house faced the street, said Councilman Jeff Steinkamp. Councilman Jack Tornholm said the city could vacate only the part of the street next to the church property.

Sinn said she would prefer that because she doesn’t want the house to face a private drive. Especially when she tries to sell it in the future.

“Whatever you guys decide is fine with us,” Degen told the city council.

The church could grant an easement to the property at 106 Penn to guarantee parking in front of the house if Sinn want that, said Degen. The church only needs the part of the street in front of the church.

The church started discussing the project before 2020, but COVID shut it down, Degen said. The church is revisiting the expansion now.

The city council agreed to pursue the vacation and will discuss details at future meetings.