NEW YORK's Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine outlines development on close

[SOURCE: Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine, New York Times] In a March 29 letter to the diocese and on its website, the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine has described a seven year effort to develop two underutilized perimeter parcels on its property.

The Very Rev. Dr. James A. Kowalski, dean of the cathedral, told the New York Times in an April 4 article that income from the two parcels might generate up to $5 million annually to support the cathedral's mission, helping the cash-starved institution increase its small endowment, undertake deferred maintenance and meet operating costs.

The unfinished cathedral is running a debt of up to $1 million a year and facing up to $20 million in maintenance expenses, according to the Times.

One 32,000-square-foot site is on the southeast corner of the property at 110th Street and Morningside Drive. The other 55,000 square feet is along 113th Street between Amsterdam Avenue and Morningside Drive on the north side of the campus. The cathedral close covers 11.3 acres.

In November, the cathedral signed a lease agreement for the southeast site with AvalonBay Communities, Inc., which plans to build and manage a 20-story 300-unit residential rental building on the land. The Times reported that the lease would run for 99 years and that the cathedral would realize about $2.5 million annually for the first 20 years.

A year ago the cathedral agreed to give Columbia University an option through 2008 to lease and develop an academic facility on the north site. The agreement can be extended for as many as eight more years, ending if Columbia does not exercise its option, according to the cathedral.

The initiative, according to the website and the March 29 letter, is part of a strategy to preserve the buildings and open spaces on the grounds as well as the religious, educational, cultural and civic programs that the cathedral supports. No buildings on the grounds will be demolished or altered.

It will sustain the "religious, social, cultural and educational mission commitment of the Cathedral to the neighborhood and the City," according to the letter and the website. The developments will "enliven the streets surrounding the campus, making them safer for pedestrians" and increase "substantially the long-term economic activity in the neighborhood."

"The corner of Cathedral Parkway and Morningside Drive will be transformed from a desolate, vacant area to a well-lit, beautifully landscaped corner that is safer for pedestrians," the website (www.stjohndivine.org/campus_realestate.html) says.

The building's garage will be located behind a wall that will replace the partially collapsed retaining wall. A new and "significantly enhanced" play area will be created south of the cathedral nave; it will be open to the public when not in use by cathedral programs. The Rose Garden will be relocated east of Diocesan House.

On the north site, the cathedral said, it has set strict development guidelines as to the height and bulk of what can be built, and required that open space surrounds the future structure. The building or buildings will be set back so as not to obstruct views of the cathedral and the height will not exceed the eave line of the cathedral (approx. 145 feet). The structure will be reduced in height at the portion of the site adjacent to the north transept.

The structure will be situated about 70 feet north of the cathedral—about the width of Lexington Avenue (building to building). A new plaza, open to the public and accessible from Amsterdam Avenue, will be established between the new building and the cathedral nave. The north transept, when rebuilt, will be visible and accessible from 113th Street. The deteriorating sheds and chain-link fence on the site will be removed.