By Dan Murphy
A group of Yonkers residents submitted the following release concerning the future of St. Mary’s Church.
“Parishioners and residents of the city of Yonkers held a rally outside of Yonkers City Hall on June 25 to urge elected officials to take immediate action to accord landmark status to St. Mary’s (Church of the Immaculate Conception). St. Mary’s Church (The Church of the Immaculate Conception) is the oldest Roman Catholic parish in the city of Yonkers. Built in 1848, St. Mary’s is often called the “Cathedral of the Hudson River Valley.”
An official application has been submitted to the Yonkers City Council to accord landmark status to St. Mary’s Church. The city of Yonkers Landmark Preservation Board unanimously accepted the application to landmark the church on April 3, 2024.
The application has been reviewed by the city of Yonkers Planning Board, who also unanimously approved it.
The Archdiocese of NY has alleged that the church structure is in need of $10 million to repair the structure. Private Engineers agree that the church structure is in need of repair, but the $10 million estimate is grossly exaggerated.
The Archdiocese of NY banned St. Mary’s Parish Council and its parishioners from engaging in fundraising activity to make repairs to the church.
The Archdiocese of New York has recently decreed that Mass in Spanish will no longer be said, thereby alienating its many Hispanic parishioners, who believe St. Mary’s Church is a sacred place.
Parishioners assert that the Archdiocese of NY, through its representatives, has been lobbying the Yonkers City Council and the Mayor of Yonkers to stall, delay, and ultimately deny giving landmark status to St. Mary’s Church.
The Archdiocese of New York has decreed that St. Mary’s Church will be merged with St.Peter’s/St.Denis, a parish already at capacity.
In the absence of a landmark decision, parishioners are concerned St. Mary’s Church will be sold by the Archdiocese of NY, and subsequently demolished.
St. Mary’s sits on .52 acres. If the Archdiocese were to sell the church site, they would fetch a good price from commercial real estate developers.
The Archdiocese of NY has recently suffered a financial setback. The New York state appeals court has found that its insurer for the Archdiocese of New York, Chubb Insurance entities, can move forward with their attempts to remove their liability for paying settlements against the Archdiocese of NY.
St. Mary’s Church has been a major part of the Yonkers community for over 175 years. The church is a sanctuary for people of diverse backgrounds, united by their faith. Tonight, the Yonkers catholic community, many of whom are Hispanic, will come together in solidarity to demand that the Mayor of Yonkers, Mike Spano, and the seven members of the Yonkers city council, vote in favor of designating St. Mary’s as a landmark, with no further delay,” end of release.
Editor’s Note: While the Landmarking of St. Mary’s was not on the agenda for their June 26 meeting, every summer the council calls a special meeting, and it is believed that the Landmarking vote will be held then.
In April, the New York Supreme Court’s Appellate Division, ruled that judgements filed by Chubb against the Archdiocese of NY, claiming that the archdiocese had prior knowledge of sex abuse cases filed against Archdiocese staff under the Child Victims Act, and because of that fact, they are not required to pay the settlements, can proceed.
Look for both parties to continue to litigate this in court for a long time.
The archdiocese wrote the following response to Chubb’s attempts not to pay settlements.“Chubb Insurance Companies have continued their recent reprehensible practice of making false and misleading statements in their ongoing effort to walk away from their contractual obligations to provide insurance coverage in sexual abuse lawsuits brought under the Child Victims Act (CVA). Their latest claims have come regarding the April 23, 2024 New York First Department Appellate Court decision permitting Chubb’s declaratory judgment action against the Archdiocese of New York to proceed.
“The Chubb lawsuit makes the absurd and unfounded claim that the Archdiocese of New York “expected or intended” the sexual abuse that allegedly occurred in the lawsuits filed against it. The archdiocese will continue to vigorously oppose this false claim by Chubb. Chubb’s actions have also led to fear-mongering in the press, pushing the idea that the archdiocese will now need to declare bankruptcy. Although Chubb’s business model is apparently to seek to drive their own customers into bankruptcy to settle claims at a discount, the archdiocese has repeatedly stressed that it has no intention of declaring bankruptcy.
“The decision by the First Department simply permits the Chubb lawsuit to proceed, and there has been no judicial determination regarding Chubb’s allegations. It must be noted that Chubb is continuing to defend the archdiocese and its additional insured organizations in the CVA lawsuits covered under its insurance policies, and Chubb is obligated to continue doing so while this litigation is pending. Under the Chubb policies purchased by the archdiocese, Chubb is also obligated to indemnify the archdiocese and its additionally insured organizations for these CVA claims, an obligation Chubb seeks to avoid through this specious lawsuit.
“The archdiocese has repeatedly made clear its desire to compensate victim-survivors who have meritorious claims, no matter how hard Chubb tries to walk away from its legal, moral, and contractual obligations. Chubb is the obstacle standing between a just resolution for victim-survivors and the compensation they seek.
“For many decades prior to 2000, the Archdiocese of New York purchased from Chubb Insurance Companies general liability insurance coverage, including coverage for sexual misconduct claims, for itself and the parishes, schools and archdiocesan charitable organizations. Insurance premiums paid by the archdiocese to Chubb for those many years, if invested conservatively, would today be valued at over $1.4 billion. It is clear that protecting its bank accounts has become Chubb’s sole guiding principle,” end of Archdiocese statement.
The Archdiocese did release a letter to parishioners about the merger between St. Mary’s and St. Peter/ St. Dennis parishes. The three page document is a decree signed by Cardinal Timothy Dolan. Parishioners and residents have appealed that decision through a canonical appeal. If the Archdiocese does not respond to the appeal, the group can appeal with the papal authority in Rome. Many parishioners are not willing to go to St. Peter/St. Denis, a church that is overcrowded and unable to absorb the overflow from St. Mary’s
A group of concerned parishioners and St. Mary’s alumni have formed a non-profit, St. Mary’s Friends, to raise money for capital repairs. A website will be up soon at www.stmarysfriends.org.
“The non-profit organization St. Mary’s Friends is working to ensure the preservation of St. Mary’s (Church of the Immaculate Conception) Yonkers, New York. The mission of the organization is to save the church, so parishioners can continue to express their faith. We have been instrumental in filing an canonical appeal to stop the archdiocese from merging St. Mary’s Parish with St. Peter’s/St. Denis. We are working to gain landmark status from the city of Yonkers for both the external as well as internal physical structures.
“We are also working to submit an application for the National Historic Registry. We are also working to raise the funds necessary for building preservation and maintenance, including, but not limited to, the pursuit of grant opportunities and the launch of a capital campaign, to ensure the integrity of the buildings for future generations. We will work to preserve the church buildings, not only as a place for mass, but as a chapel or a shrine, where people can pray. It is our aim to protect the legacy of St. Mary’s Church as an enduring beacon and Sacred Space of the Roman Catholic faith in the city of Yonkers,” wrote the group in an email to Yonkerstimes.com.
