Bushwick's St. Barbara's Church Designated Official Historic Landmark

BUSHWICK, BROOKLYN — Bushwick's gorgeous St. Barbara's Roman Catholic Church was historically landmarked Tuesday by the Landmarks Preservation Commission as part of a hearing on backlogged buildings, which means the church now can't be demolished or altered on the outside without the commission's approval, the LPC reported.

The historic church, at 138 Bleecker St., is a rare occurrence of Spanish Colonial Revival style on the east coast. Its two 175-ft-tall towers and dome are elegant and elaborately decorated. It was built by architecture firm Helmle & Huberty in from 1907 to 1910, according to the LPC.

A representative of the Catholic church said at an LPC hearing in October 2015 that the Diocese of Brooklyn didn't want the church to be landmarked. The reasoning was that landmarking the church would mean the Diocese would have to spend more money following LPC guidelines when refurbishing it, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported.

The church was one of 95 properties that were up for historic designation but backlogged by the LPC for several years. In November 2014, the LPC said it was going to erase all the backlogged properties from its calendar, but after a hefty pushback from preservationists, the LPC decided to review all 95 properties quickly and efficiently. On Tuesday, the last of the 95 were reviewed.

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