Under Proposed Judgement Only 4 Exterior Walls of St. Mary's Church, Yonkers, Will Remain Landmarked

The proposed judgement, e-filed on 3/5/2026 by Jacob Amir representing the Archdiocese of New York, removes landmark status from the parish hall, the rectory and the interior of St. Mary's Church.  David Imamura signed the stipulation representing the City of Yonkers.  

The only element retaining landmark protection under this proposed judgement is the "exterior facade," of the church (incorporating the chapel) as outlined in pink on the image above, identified as Exhibit A in the document.

An interested party sent the proposed judgement to a parishioner last evening in response to a Facebook post.  It was like a bombshell, as many thought that landmark status was an unassailable golden dome assuring that St. Mary's would continue to stand forever.

The parishioners trying to save the church and have its status as a parish restored were shocked that the attorney representing Yonkers had signed a proposal that removed most of the protections from the landmark designation.  The City of Yonkers and its City Council had been staunch defenders of landmark protection for this beleaguered church.  

Documents for the case are available online. Because this case was brought before the Supreme Court of Westchester County, you can use the WebCivil Supreme Case Search Form.  The index number for the case is 75204/2024.

 

St. Mary's Landmark Status Threatened by Settlement Negotiations

The Archdiocese of New York and the Immaculate Conception corporation brought suit against the city of Yonkers, the Yonkers City Council and the City of Yonkers Landmark Committee on November 14, 2024.  The aim of the suit was to remove landmark status from the church.

A court document dated January 7, 2026 indicated that "the parties are negotiating a settlement to present to the court."

The last event logged for the case on legal intelligence database Trellis was January 19, 2026. No future events are scheduled.  A deadline of January 29, 2026 was set for the plaintiffs  (Archdiocese of New York, et al) to file their reply papers, if needed.

Today it was heard that the City of Yonkers settled, agreeing to rescind the landmark status of the church interior.  Later it was heard that the issue was discussed by the Yonkers City Council but not put to a vote.

No information about the negotiations and their outcome was made public by either the City of Yonkers or the Archdiocese of New York.

Stay tuned to learn what you can do to help save this beautiful historic church and home to a warm and  dynamic congregation.

St. Emeric Church and School To Become Development Site

And then there were none?

The fate of Catholic churches in the East Village is beginning to sound like an Agatha Christie mystery.  A Hoodline NYC item dated February 24 informs us that a DOB application has been submitted for a 206 foot-tall, 21-story building with about 350 apartments. The Archdiocese of New York sold the site in 2024 for $35 million.  

Read all about it: East Village Church Lot Set to Sprout 21-Story, 350-Unit Tower

The parish of St. Emeric was extinguished and the church became a secondary church in the parish of St. Brigid-St. Emeric in 2013, when the last Mass was held.  It was closed in and relegated to profane but not sordid use on November 4, 2020.  Relegation is the last canonical step before disposition of the property.

Church of Nativity, which had been attended by Dorothy Day was sold for $20 million in 2020 and demolished in 2022.   St. Brigid's and Most Holy Redeemer are still standing.  Most Holy Redeemer was closed on September 1, 2025.  Parishioners are working to save it.

St. Mary's/Immaculate Conception - "First there is a parish, then there is no parish, then there is..."

The elusive object in my life is St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception, the church in Yonkers where I attend Mass every Sunday.

When I started going there it was a parish with 5 Masses every weekend, a Pastor, Father Anthony Columba Ekanem, and a parish council.  Then, on May 24,  2024, Cardinal Dolan issued a decree ending its life as a parish and making it a secondary church in the Parish of St. Peter/St. Denis.  Masses were reduced to one Sunday Mass in English.

Devoted to their spiritual home, parishioners appealed to the Cardinal to reverse his decision.  When his reply was a denial they sent an appeal to the Dicastery for the Clergy, a department of the Holy See, on July 23, 2024.  The Dicastery for Clergy ruled in favor of the parishioners and St. Mary's/Immaculate Conception became a parish again on March 31, 2025.

Nothing changed!  St. Mary's was not assigned its own pastor, no parish council was assembled and the Mass schedule was not restored.  Parishioners were baffled and began drafting a letter to the Dicastery for Clergy informing them that the Archdiocese was ignoring their decree.

On December 17, 2025, the day before his official retirement, Cardinal Dolan issued a new decree making St. Mary's again a secondary church in the Parish of St. Peter/St. Denis.  Parishioners hand delivered an appeal  to Cardinal Dolan's office on December 23, 2025.  Because no reply was received, the parishioners again sent an appeal to the Vatican's Dicastery for the Clergy on February 4, 2026.

Right now St. Mary's is a church, not a parish.  I hope at some point I will be singing a new song unto the Lord.  Until then its Donovan.

"I've grown fat, I've grown a beard, I've grown alone..."

These are the opening lines of Melanie's "Groundhog's Day."  I admit that I've overhibernated and missed the February 2nd cue to stick my head out to look for my shadow.  But I am now bright-eyed, bushy-tailed and motivated to continue resisting the closure of my church, St. Mary's in Yonkers, and supporting others like the parishioners at Most Holy Redeemer church.

What disturbed my torpor?  A visit to historic Mary House for a screening of "Foreclosing on Faith," a 2017 film that documents parishioners' response to the closing of their churches.  The film also associates these closings with the Church's need to meet expenses related to the abuse crisis and subsequent period of denial, minimization and downright deception.  Here are the specifics:

• Mary House - historic Catholic Worker house of hospitality and residence of Dorothy Day.  It really exuded a vibe of hallowed ground with echoes of Our Lady of Vilnus.  The CW people were very friendly as were the 2 blase cats who circulated among the audience throughout the screening.
• Edita - a Lithuanian woman I met who admitted to reading my blog and thus inspired me to wake up and write.
• Brody Hale - My telephone friend and advisor of 20 years who I met in person for the first time.  You can see hear him, too, on podcasts on Save Rome of the West.

So this is the context in which I awakened and clawed my way through 16 inches of snow to greet you anew.  Now for the song.  Hit it Melanie...

Save Rome of the West (and North, South and East, too!)

The name Save Rome of the West sounds very specific.  Sure, it was started to help parishioners hold on to their churches in St. Louis, Mo.  However it is chock full of resources to help you learn your rights as a parishioner and appeal the closing of your church or the extinction of your parish.

It presents the rudiments of canon law beginning with basic definitions and lays out strategies, canonical and other, to start and conduct a movement to save your parish and/or church.  For those who might be intimidated by so many inches of text information is also presented in podcasts.  In addition to being educated I enjoyed the byplay between the two charming canon wonks, Brody Hale and Jason Bolte, as they made inherently confusing content clear and even mildly entertaining.  

The average parishioner standing alone in objection to losing their church feels powerless against a diocese or archdiocese.  Parishioners standing together can make an impact and send a powerful message.  Multiple parishes standing on their rights can send a powerful message to the institutional church as high up as the Vatican.

Save Rome of the West

All Hallows Students Crowdsourcing Funds to Afford Prom Tickets

The resourceful and resilient All Hallows seniors nearly lost the opportunity to gather as a class for the last time when their prom was almost cancelled because not enough students could afford the tickets.  They reduced the ticket price by finding a less costly venue and began to raise money on their own.

Why can't some of the greater than $1 million raised in the failed attempt to keep the school open be used to send every senior and his or her date to the prom for free?  They deserve it, especially the young women of Saint Barnabas who were sent to All Hallows when their school abruptly closed.

Read all about it at The New York Post:How NYC teens saved the last prom at closing Catholic school after tickets became too costly for students

St. Mary's is Back on Top! (of the Sunday Bulletin, at least)

The Vatican overruled Cardinal Dolan's decree extinguishing St. Mary's as a parish and merging it into the parish of St. Peter-St. Denis.  But this is Canon Law and, unfortunately, there is not a Canon PD to call when it is violated.  Therefore, it is a very good sign that the weekly bulletin header reads "Immaculate Conception - St. Mary's Church.

As opposed to the previous week's, which was headed "St. Peter's - St. Denis and Immaculate Conception Church."