By Richard J. DeRosas
Lawrence Development Group, LLC (LDG) is seeking approximately 17.8 million dollars in private and public funds to restore the historic St Anne’s Church and Hall in Lawrence MA. We have identified Federal and State Historic Tax Credits as well as New Markets Tax Credits which we expect will provide us with approximately $10.6 million. We are requesting the City of Lawrence to consider a TIF for the project in the amount of $2.95 million. To complete funding for the project we will be seeking additional Federal and State Funding.
The restoration and revitalization of St Anne’s Churches will transform the former Parish Hall and Cathedral into a community gathering place and center for the visual and performing arts.
When complete, the professionally staffed Lawrence Performance Center will serve the greater Lawrence region as a fully accessible community-based center for the performing arts and cinema, where professional touring artists will be integrated with films from around the world, and Merrimack Valley community organizations and Massachusetts artists will delight local audiences. Banquets, conferences, corporate meetings, educational experiences, formal functions, luncheons, parties, and receptions round out some of the Center’s many possible uses.
The St. Anne’s Parish Hall, simple yet elegant in its design with cross vaulted ceilings, painted mural, and Corinthian capital columns will provide an exciting and flexible performance space for intimate and innovative programs and events. The Parish Hall with a restored facade and new shimmering glass lobby area will seat 350 patrons utilizing portable tiered seating units arranged in a variety of settings for film and live performance presentations. In an open seating plan the Hall has almost limitless possibilities.
The 850-seat St. Anne’s Cathedral, with soaring arched ceilings, stained glass windows, and carved marble statuary presents an inspiring and truly unique setting. The rich textures of the early 20th century cathedral will be preserved and highlighted with a vision for the 21st century, to provide a comfortable and dynamic space featuring a glassed visual art gallery overlooking the flexible tiered audience area and state-of-the-art performance space.
The restoration and revitalization of the St. Anne’s churches as the Lawrence Performance Center will have a powerful catalytic effect on the character of downtown Lawrence, on its growing creative economy, and on the economic well-being of the Merrimack Valley.
This project will link a connection with the new building of the Lawrence Police and Fire Department along with the expansion of NECC. This integration with the Lawrence Performing Art Center will create a facility that will expand the educational, cultural and economic growth of the city. Performances and other venues will generate money for the city to stimulate economic growth with shopping and dining in the city’s restaurants.
Our vision is to connect people of all ages and cultures through the magic of lives performance. All of this will be in the heart of the city. We look forward to working together with the city and stakeholders to bring this project to fruition.
History
St. Anne’s Church and St. Anne’s Parish Hall are the primary surviving buildings of St. Anne’s Parish, a significant religious and social institution in Lawrence for 120 years. One of the earliest French-Canadian parishes in New England, St. Anne’s was established by the Archdiocese of Boston in 1871 to serve Lawrence’s growing French-Canadian community. Masses were held in donated or rented sites throughout the community while parishioners awaited a church of their own. Construction on the first St. Anne’s Church (now the Parish Hall) on Haverhill Street began in 1873 and by 1876 the first services were held on the ground floor of the church. In 1878, although still incomplete, the upper floors of St. Anne’s Church were used for services. The church was not considered completed, and blessed by Archbishop Williams, until 1884.
By 1900 the parish had outgrown the church, and purchased near-by land to build a new St. Anne’s Church. Construction on the brick masonry structure with soaring Romanesque arches began on April 3, 1903 and was completed by the end of 1905. The first mass in the new church, with a capacity of 2400, was held on January 1, 1906. Decorative elements and furnishings such as stained glass windows, the altar, and the organ were added over the years. The church underwent renovations in the early 1940s and again in 1971, in accordance with new liturgical guidelines. All-the-while, the original St. Anne’s church continued to be used for weekday services until the early 1950s, when it was converted for full-time use as a parish hall.
With a decline in church attendance and membership, St. Anne’s Parish was closed by the Archdiocese of Boston in 1991. However, St. Ann’s Church continued to serve a Latino Roman Catholic congregation for a brief period of time in the early 1990s, and the Parish Hall found use by a church-sponsored after-school program, until fire destroyed the adjoining former rectory in approximately 1999.
Project Description
The restoration and revitalization of the historic St Anne’s Churches will transform the former Parish Hall and Cathedral into a community gathering place and center for the visual and performing arts.
When complete, the professionally staffed Lawrence Performance Center will serve the greater Lawrence region as a fully accessible community-based center for the performing arts and cinema, where professional touring artists will be integrated with films from around the world, and Merrimack Valley community organizations and Massachusetts artists will delight local audiences. Banquets, conferences, corporate meetings, educational experiences, formal functions, luncheons, parties, and receptions round out some of the Center’s many possible uses.
The St. Anne’s Parish Hall, simple yet elegant in its design with cross vaulted ceilings, painted mural, and Corinthian capital columns will provide an exciting and flexible performance space for intimate and innovative programs and events. The Parish Hall with a restored façade and new shimmering glass lobby area will seat 350 patrons utilizing portable tiered seating units arranged in a variety of settings for film and live performance presentations. In an open seating plan the Hall has almost limitless possibilities.
The 850-seat St. Anne’s Cathedral, with soaring arched ceilings, stained glass windows, and carved marble statuary presents an inspiring and truly unique setting. The rich textures of the early 20th century cathedral will be preserved and highlighted with a vision for the 21st century, to provide a comfortable and dynamic space featuring a glassed visual art gallery overlooking the flexible tiered audience area and state-of-the-art performance space.
The restoration and revitalization of the St. Anne’s churches as the Lawrence Performance Center has an estimated project budget of $8,000,000. The Lawrence Performance Center will have a powerful catalytic effect on the character of downtown Lawrence, on its growing creative economy, and on the economic well-being of the Merrimack Valley.
