The A.M.E Zion Church was denied an application for demolition by the Architectural Review Commission with a unanimous vote. After the application was brought in front of the commission several times, Chairman Michele Basch decided to bring the application to a vote.

The church can come to the board with another application, but the current application was denied. The current building has served the community since 1905, the congregation has been in Newburgh since 1827.

Walking into the A.M.E Zion church you can see the issues faced by the small congregation, starting with a deteriorating facade with pieces falling off. Regardless of the lingering issues, the congregation led an intimate service on Palm Sunday celebrating 192 years of service in the City of Newburgh.

Senior members struggled as they climbed up the creaky front steps to the sanctuary for their Sunday Service.

“The church is in a state that needs to be repaired, we don’t want to lose the church, but if we don’t do something we might get condemned,” said Rudolph Warren a member since 1972. “It’s a lifeline that was born here out of need, it was connected to Washington Headquarters. It’s a part of history and should be here from generation to generation.”

Pastor Milton Stubbs did not want to comment on the next action the church will take regarding the denied application, but he assured they are not finished. He along with the board of the church is looking at the best option moving forward.
Basch looks at the application entirely from an architectural point of view.

“The ARC is in place to protect the historically significant architecture within Newburgh’s Historic District,” said Basch. “The application requested the right to demolish the AME Zion Church. This structure has witnessed 100 plus years of African American history within our city. One can not demolish a building in Newburgh’s Historic District unless it is beyond repair or unsellable.”

The proposed building would include 50 apartments with affordable housing standing six stories high incorporating the current wood ceiling slats, stained glass, and bell tower into the new building. They would like to create an entrance that accommodates disabled congregation members that cannot make it past the current stairs in the entrance to the building.

Stubbs along with the board intends to come up with a new plan in coming months for how the church will proceed.