Marble Collegiate Church

Marble Collegiate Church in Manhattan is an 1854 building with elegant Victorian stenciling, patterning, and finishes throughout the sanctuary. The community’s restoration efforts focused on consolidation of delaminating plaster (cleaving from the attachment system or general deterioration), painting in the historically-informed palette, and reinstatement of compromised patterns with an eye to preserving the 19th century interior for use in the 21st century. The Marble Collegiate Church, founded in 1628, is one of the oldest continuous Protestant congregations in North America.

Deferring maintenance can be costly, but the funds aren’t always available to do everything at once. Congregations are often surprised by how developing a holistic restoration or renewal program can elevate a scope of work from maintenance to revitalization. Looking at the big picture (which may include all the things that need to be repaired for life safety and access to reach it, straight painting, conservation of historic artwork, as well as the beautiful things that may fall under a wish list if funds are available) can seem like a very tall order, but has concrete benefits. A comprehensive vision with associated budgets allows for a strategic plan of attack and allocation of resources on a project that may seem insurmountable.