Bay Ridge church to be torn down

BY MATTHEW LYSIAK
DAILY NEWS WRITER

Wednesday, January 16th 2008, 4:00 AM

Congregants of a 108-year-old Bay Ridge church are asking the public to help tear it down - literally.

The clock is now ticking on the landmarked Bay Ridge United Methodist Church, which is slated to be razed and replaced with a smaller church and a big apartment building in the next four months, church officials said.

"We should have the church demolished by May," said the Rev. Robert Emerick."We are going to take this crumbling building, which has become a financial albatross, and use the resources to continue our mission to work for God."

For residents looking to preserve a piece of the Green Church, the Rev. has a message: Step right up and grab a hunk.

"Everyone is welcome to come here and pull a chunk of rock off the church to save as a memento," said Emerick. "Come over and take as much as you want. The stones are literally crumbling right off."

The pending demolition comes despite a push by area preservationists to save the beloved structure, pitting them against church congregants.

"No one in this community wants to see this church demolished, except the congregants," said Bay Ridge preservationist Victoria Hofmo. "Another piece of our past is going to be demolished, and when it happens this community is going to be absolutely devastated."

The apartment building will include at least 50 units, said Abeco Management Corp. developer Abe Betesh.

"We are not going to build $900,000 luxury condos," said Betesh, who is in contract to buy the property and expects the building to be completed within two years of the demolition. "These will be affordable...with a lot of recreation room."

The old, 650-seat church may be coming down, but the new 150-seat "green church" will at least be preserving the trademark nickname it earned for its distinct green limestone facade.

"We are going to do everything in our power to reduce our dependency on oil in our new church," said Emerick. "This church will be truly green."

Church officials aren't releasing the amount of the sale, but did say it was under the $12 million asking price.

The money will be put into a trust with the accrued interest going towards charity organizations committed to helping the needy, said Emerick, who is expecting the sale to be approved this week. New York requires court approval for the sale of nonprofit properties.