MANVILLE: Two Catholic churches studying their future

Flooding fears threaten future of Christ the King sanctuary

What’s the future of the two Roman Catholic parishes in Manville?
A recently started study by a committee with members from each of Christ the King and Sacred Heart churches may give an answer.
The two parishes have begun a nine-month process intended to create a closer relationship, says the diocese.
Redemptorist Father Stanislaus Slaby, pastor of both parishes, said the “Renewing the Church” process aims for a long-term plan to strengthen the church in Manville. The plan’s recommendations, which will take into account the effects of chronic flooding in Manville, will be presented to Diocese of Metuchen Bishop Paul G. Bootkoski.
Prior to the beginning of the process in January, Father Slaby said, the bishop agreed in November to renovations to Christ the King Church, whose basement had been severely damaged by floods in August. The boiler and bathrooms had to repaired as well as the electrical wiring on the elevator.
By Christmas, the boiler was fixed, and parishioners were able to return to Christ the King, but more repairs needed to be completed.
”Now the elevator is working, and final work that will restore the whole building has begun,” Father Slaby said.
All renovations are expected to be completed next month.
Christ the King Church, which is in a “100-year flood” zone, has faced costly repairs due to flooding several times in recent years, and it is likely to face flood damage in the future. Since renovation to eliminate future flood damage, which is not guaranteed, would cost in excess of a million dollars, the bishop also decided in November that this will be the last time the church will be extensively renovated, Father Slaby added.
The fate of the church’s rectory, which was made uninhabitable by the floods, has not been decided, said Father Slaby. What should be done with the rectory will be determined after the “Renewing the Church” process finishes, but the bishop suggested in an earlier document that it will be torn down.
”Our goal (for the study) is to lay a foundation for a prosperous Catholic community here in our town,” Father Slaby said.
There are 738 registered families in the Christ the King parish, said Joanne Ward, the diocese’s communications manager. Sacred Heart has 1,159 member families.
Sacred Heart, which is on South 2nd Avenue, was built in 1919, predominantly to serve a Polish and Slavic community, she said. Christ the King was built on Louis Street in 1946 to serve the nearby geographical area, she said.
Six members from each of the two parishes will meet monthly to study, pray and discern the future for Manville’s Catholic community. Parishioners of the parishes will be kept informed of the meetings through their parish bulletins and websites and the diocese’s website. They also will have the opportunity to provide input. The group has held two meetings thus far, focused on the relationship between the two parishes.
Christ the King’s discernment team includes Mayor Angelo Corradino, Dolores Finlan, Deacon Tom Giacobbe, Peter Lachac, Philip Strollo and Kathy Tartaglione. Sacred Heart Parish’s representatives are Joseph Gazo, Lucy Jaime, Stanley Jasinski, Joseph Ketusky, Mark Peltack and Deacon William Stefany.
Information on the meetings of the discernment teams can be found at ctkmanvillechurch.com and sacred-heart-church.org and the Diocese of Metuchen website, diometuchen.org.
From 1994 to 2010, the Diocesan Office of Insurance has handled 12 flood claims from Christ the King Parish, not counting the current claim. To date, insurance has paid out $1,094,000 on those 12 claims, reads Bishop Bootkoski’s decision on restoring the parish.
The claims range from $2,240 to $437,000. The current claim is $414,000, plus cleanup so far of $83,828. The cost of fixing the church building is about $135,000, the document says.
”Since the church sits in the flood zone, insurance can tell us we need a separate insurance policy on this property at any time. We have been told that future deductibles could be in excess of $400,000,” reads the bishop’s decision. “Total claims, including the deductibles and current claim, equals $1,991,828.
Since the federal agency FEMA has allocated $6 million for purchase of homes in the vicinity of the church, it is suggesting the area around the church will see depopulation in the future, the decision reads.
”It would be impractical to keep repairing the church as insurance premiums and deductibles rise, depopulation ensues, and the foundation faces water damage from future floods. However, in the interest of promoting parish stability, Bishop Bootkoski has agreed to restore the Christ the King Church one last time with specific terms.”
The cost of moving heating, cooling and bathrooms out of the basement is estimated to cost $1.4 million, the bishop’s document says.
”Spending all of the parish’s savings to do this when we cannot be guaranteed that future flooding will not reach higher levels would not demonstrate good stewardship, would not be approved by the bishop and should not be considered.”
The school, which sits on higher ground, will continue to operate as it has.