Church front after theft of stained glass windows
$193,700 was the low bid for demolition of the former Central United Methodist Church at Griscom and Orthodox Streets. The winning bidder has 60 days to complete the job after the contract is signed. John Loftus, in this week’s Northeast Times has a recap of the events that lead up to this unfortunate ending to a wonderful building.
FGM (Frankford Group Ministry) bought the former Central United Methodist Church in the late 1990s, said Suzy Keenan, spokeswoman for the United Methodist Church’s Eastern Pennsylvania Conference. The church building, erected in the 1890s, remained home to the Methodist congregation through 2005, when it closed.
In 1992, (Rev. Thomas) Brooks said, the church’s tower, which could be seen throughout Frankford, was found to be unstable and dismantled. In 2008, FGM sank $70,000 into repairing a wall on the building’s Griscom Street side that is now buckling again.
Since the wall collapse last summer, thieves have stolen some of the building’s stained glass. Recently, about 100 stained-glass windows were photographed and removed. Brooks said the ministry will try to sell the pieces to raise money for the demolition.
You can read the entire story here.
