St. Paul’s Episcopal Church earlier this summer got the Historical Commission’s blessing to tear down its parish house, known as Gale House, and that demolition is expected to take place by year end. The demo was approved by a 4-1 vote and will pave the way for a major church renovation years in the making.
Gale House at 39 E. Central St. (Photo by Maureen L. Sullivan)
St. Paul’s purchased the property where the church building and Gale House are located in 1911, and both buildings are showing their age. The church last year wrapped up a capital campaign that scored $3.5m thanks to pledges, a matching grant and $1.5m from an anonymous donor. The funds will be used to renovate the church and land.
The church explored possibilities for saving—or selling—the 125-year-old former late-Victorian residence at 39 East Central St. that in recent years has been used for administrative office and archives space, as well as for meeting rooms. Gale House lacked accessibility and was badly in need of upgrades that would make it a financial burden for the church. In the end, alternatives to a teardown didn’t prove to be practical.
Gale House in the past had been used as the headquarters for Natick Service Council’s food pantry, as well as UPON (United Parishes of Natick).
In the future, the space will accomodate parking, open space for outdoor programming, and stormwater management for the renovated church building.
Rev. Becky Binns has been providing parishioners with regular updates on project plans and town approvals, including a play-by-play of the “edge of our seat” Historical Commission meeting that Binns attended along with an architect, lawyer, and project managers. (Unfortunately, meeting recordings are not made publicly available, though minutes are.)
Binns wrote after the decision that “Since Gale House is 125 years old, there was a desire amongst members of the Historical Commission to somehow keep the house and find the funds to restore it to its original glory (or sell it to someone who could and would). While we have been on a multi-year journey of exploring every possible option, they were just getting caught up to speed, and they needed to know that we have considered everything already. Which we have. They were also interested in hearing about our plans for an outdoor chapel and a garden to honor the Indigenous ancestors of this land where Gale House currently sits.”
The church will be removing stained-glass windows from Gale House and getting them restored for installation in a new office wing down the road.
St. Paul’s has been busy emptying the Gale House and encouraging parishioners to visit a discard area if there are things they can use or want to sell (with an ask to make a partial donation to the church from any sales). It has also called on parishioners for help with various landscaping and other projects related to the site prep.
The church will use its chapel as a temporary office space.
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