It didn’t make sense for her to take a detour down Maple Street in Wilton one day in December, said the Rev. Robin Lunn. But something drew her down that road, and put her in a perfect position to see the “For Sale” sign in front of the former Sacred Heart Church and parish.
“I called the Realtor, and within a week, I was walking through the building. And as I began to walk through, these ideas started to come through,” said Lunn in an interview at the church on Sunday.
Next week, Lunn will stand in front of the Wilton Zoning Board of Adjustment, to continue her application for multiple variances and a special exception to turn the church into a non-denominational multi-use community building (See story, page 4). If the project gets the green light at that level, Lunn will move forward to the Planning Board for a site plan review process. If Lunn can convince both boards that the project is in the public interest and sufficiently answer concerns regarding things such as hours of operation, signage and parking, she hopes to get started quickly on renovations to the parish house to turn them into affordable apartments.
Lunn and her wife and fellow minister, Rev. Shayna Appel, have long tossed about the idea of purchasing a church, to put into motion ideas that have been percolating in Lunn’s head since she traveled all over the country as part of her work with the Association of Welcoming and Affirming Baptists. During that work, said Lunn, she saw many congregations whose church buildings had become a burden, with most of the congregations’ efforts and funds going toward maintaining their buildings, taking away from the essential community work that churches should be focusing on. But she also saw many churches that had worked creatively to solve that problem by forging partnerships with other organizations to create revenue streams.
Lunn would like to see some of these ideas realized at the Sacred Heart.
Though the building has not been in use as a church for several years, the diocese has allowed the Open Cupboard Food Pantry to continue to operate out of its parish house, and allowed for monthly community suppers to continue in its hall.
In Lunn’s vision, not only will the food pantry and monthly suppers continue at the site, but she wants to continue to build on that theme, by transforming the downstairs hall into a nonprofit cafe, which would include some pay-what-you-can days. It’s existing commercial kitchen could be used to partner with adult education programs to teach food preparation and service skills.
“The inspiration of the existing food-based ministries was a big part of the overall vision,” said Lunn.
And, inspired by her own experience running a small nonprofit out of their spare bedroom, Lunn anticipates turning the upstairs of the church into a “co-working” space.
In the large, soon-to-be open area of the church’s second floor, there will be up to 20 workspaces available for those that need an office space to work out of for small business startups, or for students, and the ability to share resources like a copier.
“When I was working out of our spare bedroom, it was lonely,” said Lunn. “You miss that collegiate atmosphere when you’re working from home.”
And in the evening, the workspaces fold up and away, and the upper floor becomes a space for community events or classes.
Though all the pieces of the dream will be coming together over a three-year period, Lunn said the intent is to incrementally create sustainable income streams.
The project has seen some enthusiastic support from most of its neighbors – many of the residents of Maple Street were once involved in an effort to have the town buy the church and turn it into a community center. Though that idea never got off the ground, that group has since become the Wilton Community Center Committee. And its members were quick to speak about the benefits of having access to the church as a community space when asked their opinions during last week’s Zoning Board meeting.
“I am incredibly supportive of this project,” said Nicole Colvin-Griffin, a resident of Maple Street. “I see it as an unbelievably important asset to this community.”
Another Maple Street resident, Donna Crane, also spoke in favor of the project, calling the plan the best possible use for what otherwise is a “white elephant” on the street.
Wilton’s Economic Development Team also has their eye on the project, particularly the co-working space, as a positive net for the town if it’s approved.
“I work out of my house, and I have reasonable facilities, but for someone starting out, if they don’t have those amenities, this is a huge asset,” said Jackie Kahle, a member of the leadership team of the Economic Development Team.
That does not mean that the project is without its detractors, though. The Sacred Heart Church only has room on its site for about 14 parking spaces. If the Planning Board approves a plan for “stacked” parking – where cars parked on the inner spaces won’t have the ability to leave if there is a car parked in front of them – that amount increases to about 26. But even with 26 spaces, parking is inadequate for what Lunn and Appel hope to eventually have in the building.
Parking remains the main sticking point for the Zoning Board, who is set to continue its deliberation on the project next week at a date to be announced.