Especially for 126-year-old Median sandstone.

Last week, architectural consultants started the exterior restoration analysis of St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, located at 410 N. Main St., Jamestown. Barbara A. Campagna of BAC A+P and several other architectural consultants started the examination of the exterior of the church for the restoration project.

Church officials received $500,000 in funding from the state in December 2018 for the project. Campagna said restoration work needs to be done to the bell tower and the front porch that faces North Main Street.

“The building overall is sound. Median sandstone is strong,” she said. “There are some issues because of water. The front porch is almost twisting. Water is not be relieved from the roof properly. There is internal plaster damage.”

St. Luke’s Examine For Exterior Masonry Restoration Project

Campagna and her architectural consulting partners examined the church for three days, with plans to come back in September to look at the structure again. She said after the examination is completed, a plan will be made on how to restore the bell tower and front porch. She added that the start of the restoration project will happen in 2021.

“Stewardship is at the heart of both the life of faith and historical preservation,” said the Rev. Luke Fodor, St. Luke’s Episcopal Church pastor. “The people of St. Luke’s Church, with the support of New York state’s Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation, are excited to partner with renowned local and national experts to breathe new life into our 126-year-old landmark church — shoring up shifting foundations and leaking bell towers. This project will allow us to continue to extend our mission of serving our community while also ennobling the human spirit with architectural beauty, preserving our region’s history, and continuing to create a sense of place.”

Campagna said the restoration work at the church has not been slowed by the COVID-19 pandemic. She said the state grant was allocated before the pandemic.

“We still have to bid everything out. We should hire a contractor early next year,” she said. “This project should not be impacted by the pandemic.”

Along with Campagna’s architecture and planning company of Buffalo, the associate architect firm is Watts Architecture & Engineering of Buffalo; the structural engineering is Silman of Ann Arbor, Mich.; the geotechnical consultant is Barron and Associates of Clarence; the architectural conservator is Jablonski Building Conservation of New York City; and the cost estimating is being done by Trophy Point of Buffalo.

St. Luke’s Episcopal Church is located in the Jamestown Downtown Historic District, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The historic district was listed on the National Register in 2014.

St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, built in 1894, is a structure of rock-faced Medina sandstone that blends Late Gothic Revival and Romanesque Revival elements. Designed by Boston architect W.P. Wentworth, it has a traditional cruciform plan with a square bell tower attached to the northeast comer of the church. While generally in good structural condition, the tower has suffered from exterior and interior deterioration that has possibly resulted in water infiltration to the interior of the church. A preservation plan and engineering study in 2018 concluded that the front porch of the church is pulling away from the building. The front stairs are no longer level likely due to the west support wall bulging outward.

For more information, visit stlukesjamestown.org.