The Indianapolis Historic Preservation Commission on Oct. 1 denied a request from St. Philip Neri Parish to demolish the Church of the Holy Cross and its adjacent rectory, voting unanimously to refuse a certificate of appropriateness for demolition.

The commission’s decision followed hours of testimony from the parish, engineers and neighborhood advocates. Paul Carroll, representing St. Philip Neri, told commissioners that engineering estimates and masonry repair quotes ranged from $7.5 million to $8.5 million and that the parish did not have funds to make those repairs. Carroll said continued ownership of the property costs the parish about $80,000 a year and “the only option at this point” is demolition, citing canonical restrictions that, he said, limit the parish’s ability to sell or repurpose the building.

The denial came after neighbors, preservation groups and elected officials urged the commission to block demolition and to press the parish to negotiate with potential adaptive‑reuse partners. Mark Delossé of Indiana Landmarks and Tim O’Sullivan of the Holy Cross Land Use Committee said multiple reuse options — including arts, cultural, educational and nonprofit uses — had been proposed and that at least one party (the ORL Foundation) offered a plan to convert the church to a performing arts center and related community uses, a proposal the parish did not pursue. Evan Hammons and other residents argued the building’s historical and neighborhood value — and precedents for reusing decommissioned churches — weighed against demolition.

Staff advised denial. The commission’s staff report noted that the applicant’s engineering materials and an independent appraisal both indicate the building is repairable and that demolition would “erase the history and architecture of the site, the neighborhood, and the city” and therefore could not be deemed insubstantial. Staff recommended denial on the grounds that the application did not satisfy the criteria for demolition under the Holy Cross Preservation Plan and the Secretary of the Interior’s standards.

Parish pastor Father Jeffrey Dufresne, who said St. Philip Neri serves a largely Latino, immigrant congregation, framed the petition as one of religious liberty and stewardship. He told the commission that canon law constrains how and whether the parish can alienate sacred property and that the parish had concluded, after internal deliberation, that demolition was the only option. RC Engineers’ Al Pooley described structural issues with stone and anchoring elements, telling commissioners that some stone elements have failed and other pieces show internal cracking not visible from the exterior, which he said worsens the risk to public safety.

Commissioners pressed the parish on alternatives. Several members noted previous cases in which the archdiocese or other parishes sold or repurposed former church buildings and highlighted funding mechanisms — historic tax credits, grants, the Trust for Sacred Spaces, and partnerships with preservation organizations — that have supported adaptive reuse elsewhere. Commissioners also questioned why those avenues had not been pursued in depth, and whether restrictive covenants, long ground leases or sale terms could protect the parish’s religious concerns while enabling reuse.

After discussion, the commission voted to deny the demolition certificate of appropriateness. The chair called for the vote and the denial passed unanimously (9–0). The commission urged the parish to engage with staff, Indiana Landmarks and potential reuse partners to explore alternatives to demolition.

The commission’s action preserves the individually designated Holy Cross parcel while leaving open options for the parish and community to seek a mutually acceptable adaptive‑reuse plan.