KALAMAZOO, MI (WKZO AM/FM) – A group of local preservationists aren’t waiting around to lose another historic property around Bronson Park, and they are taking steps to save the First Baptist Church on Michigan Avenue.
The Courthouse next door will soon be in the hands of private developers, and Architect Nelson Nave says other losses nearby have prompted them to seek historic designation for the church, which was built in 1853.
“We lost two churches and our beloved fountain around Bronson Park in the last two to three years,” Nave said. “It is the oldest such structure in the city and the county.”
The city’s Historic Preservation Coordinator, Sharon Ferraro, says the designation will make it much more difficult for anyone to tear it down.
“Because at least in Michigan, that is the strongest protection you can possibly get for a historic building, well into the future long beyond when this congregation and the people that are establishing this district will still be around,” Ferraro said.
A private group, the Kalamazoo Nonprofit Advocacy Coalition (KNAC), has been formed to hold the deed and raise funds for its restoration.
The facility not only provides space for the congregation, but the non-profits groups that occupy the attached annex.
— Copy Written by John McNeil —
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