Neighbors anxiously awaiting demolition of historic church in Fishtown

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- The demolition of Fishtown's historic St. Laurentius Church could begin Tuesday.

Residents gathered outside of the Philadelphia landmark Monday to see the church before it comes down.

"I went all eight years of my grammar school here and I graduated in 1975, so I just came to watch because I knew this was going to happen. But now to see it happen, it hits your heart," said Mary Pawlowski of Fishtown.

Built in 1882, the St. Laurentius Church on Berks Street is a Roman Catholic Church that once largely served the Polish community. For the last several years, the parish has been at the center of a debate: demolish it or repair it.

"This past winter a lot of the bricks were coming down and our houses were shaking. There was a lot of noise," said Margaret Ann Ramsey of Fishtown.

Neighbors say the sound of falling stone and brick was so loud they thought it was an earthquake. After engineers discovered that it wasn't structurally sound, demolition became the only reasonable option.

"When you've got pieces of the building falling off and everything like that, kids going to school there, it's probably time," said Bill Kunitz of Fishtown.

Action News was there as crews were hoisted up to secure the structure for demolition. Hammering and chipping away at the roof is only the start of a difficult and tedious job.

City leaders say crews will remove the spires up top by hand out of precaution for the adjacent school and densely populated neighborhood.

Classes are back in session at St Laurentius school in just over three weeks, but removing the spires alone is expected to take 6-8 weeks.

There has been talk amongst the community about an apartment building with 50 units going in place of the church.

According to Council President Darrell Clarke, redevelopment plans have not yet been finalized.

He says the future of the site will be an ongoing discussion with the community and his office is still looking for feedback.