BUSHWICK — THE FELLOWSHIP HALL meeting space adjacent to a fire-ravaged church on Bushwick Avenue can be saved, a structural engineer told congregational leaders on Friday, according to an update posted on the church’s GoFundMe page.
Founded in 1853, the Protestant Reformed Dutch Church of South Bushwick was badly damaged in a three-alarm fire on June 19.
The congregation set up the GoFundMe account, which raised over $12,000 to support the church community and plan for restoration. According to a statement published on that page, an engineer said that the Fellowship Hall, which has also served as a rectory, “is structurally sound and does not need to be demolished.” Church leaders, along with elected and community officials, said they will continue to work toward preserving this part of the church complex.
Church leaders also met with the city Department of Buildings and “formally requested that the emergency demolition order be placed on hold. We were informed that this request would reset the timeline, giving additional opportunity to evaluate the next steps.”
The GoFundMe campaign has raised over $12,000 as of Monday.
✰✰✰
