Protect St Paul’s as a Public Commons in Wicker Park
We ask that neighbors and supporters stand up for common space dedicated to public access and sign a public petition directed to the principal decision makers, the trustees of the St Paul's Community Church in Wicker Park neighborhood, Chicago, IL.

The St Paul’s Church is an historic landmark building with a 120-year legacy serving the needs of the community for charitable purpose and public good. St Paul’s was built by Norwegian immigrants in 1890. The craftsman details in carved wood, stained glass and soaring wood ceiling provide an exquisite space designed for acoustic events. The architecture reflects an era of new immigrants, labor activists fighting for an eight-hour day, Jane Adams Hull House services and the Burnham master plan. The historical and social history of the building reminds us why place matters.  

The Near NorthWest Arts Council, a non-profit organization, entered an agreement in 2008 with the church trustees to find an adaptive reuse of the building that maintains the charitable purpose, public access and serves the needs of the community. NNWAC invested more than $120,000 to commission a feasibility study regarding the viability of a community cultural center.  NNWAC succeeded in attracting more than 38 program partners and more than 40,000 attending concerts, theater, lectures, exhibits and workshops since 2008. NNWAC manages cultural programs, arts education, and community services six days a week, and a young, growing congregation hosts two religious services on Sundays.

It is the goal of NNWAC to purchase the facility, to maintain charitable purpose, and to raise funds to rehab the building.  The church trustees breached the contract with NNWAC, deciding to sell the church for a quick cash sale. Strong objections were made public by community residents, artists users and program partners. The Wicker Park Committee and Alderman Proco Joe Moreno support the current use and charitable purpose that encourges public access.

We are at a critical juncture and need your support. Sign the petition which is directed to the St Paul’s church trustees. With the downturn in the economy, the devaluation of real estate and the condition of the building, the church board has placed a price on the property that far exceeds the current value based on use for charitable purpose. They want to sell the property on the open market, ignoring the important work that NNWAC, together with artists, teachers and community activists have invested in the community rebuilding effort.

• We the undersigned, request that the church owners sell the church property to NNWAC, a community based non-profit organization, which is pledged to protect and preserve resources dedicated to arts, education and culture.
• The transfer price should be based on the appraised value which considers the costs to bring property up to date, meeting current life and safety building codes for City of Chicago and maintains the current use for charitable purpose.
• We, the undersigned, support the continued use of the facility for public access for arts, culture, education and church use.
• We, the undersigned, believe that St Paul's Community Church should demonstrate a social responsibility to the broader Chicago community, to protect and preserve the asset that they inherited from the previous generations, not to destroy a common asset, but to allow the next generations to protect and sustain the property for future generations.

For more information about our work please visit http://www.nnwac.org   or http://www.wickerparkartcenter.org