Historic Denver and South Broadway Christian Church celebrate the completion of the exterior restoration of a Denver Historic Landmark
Historic Denver announced today that the exterior restoration of the South Broadway Christian Church has been completed and a dedication service, featuring Senator Ken Salazar, will take place on October 29, 2006 beginning at 10:30 a.m.
This historic church that sits at one of Denver's gateways on the corner of Ellsworth and Lincoln, was restored with the help of grants from the State Historical Fund and guidance from Historic Denver's Sacred Landmarks Preservation program. The dedication service for the newly restored church will include a keynote address by Senator Ken Salazar at 11:15 a.m. Light refreshments will follow the service.
This 1891 Romanesque Revival church building has been a vital institution in south Denver for more than a century. The building has consistently been a neighborhood anchor by offering necessary programs to meet the needs of the neighbors. It is a landmark that inspires the surrounding community and the congregation has made a commitment to maintain the historic integrity of the church as a role model for the entire neighborhood. The restoration project included addressing water infiltration at the foundation, restoring the masonry, and window and trim restoration.
Many community groups use the church as a gathering place. Four Alcoholic Anonymous groups, four Cocaine Anonymous groups, language classes from the Colorado Free University, Sandwich Ministry, Girl Scouts, and the Broadway Business Association hold regular meetings in the building. In addition, the church is a Red Cross emergency shelter. Denver Classical Guitar Society holds monthly meetings and concerts in the building and the church serves as the election precinct. The Pieta House Aids Hospice holds events in the church. The church is open for weddings for non-church members and any local non-profit is welcome to use the facility.
Background Information
Historic Denver, Inc.
Historic Denver, Inc. was founded in 1970 by citizens who were increasingly alarmed at the loss of the city's historic fabric due to urban renewal and insensitive development. The primary catalyst for the group's efforts, led by Ann Love, wife of then Governor John Love, was the donation of the Margaret "Molly" Tobin Brown's home and the opportunity to preserve the structure for future generations of Denverites. For the last 34 years, Historic Denver has developed programs to help protect Denver's most valuable cultural and architectural landmarks. Historic Denver is one of the leading urban preservation organizations in the country and has a membership of over 1,700 citizens.
Our Sacred Landmarks Preservation initiative is the newest program of Historic Denver. Formed by a group of concerned clergy, congregants, and community members in 1999, the group joined forces with Historic Denver in the fall of 2000. With help from Partners for Sacred Places, the University of Pennsylvania, the Piton Foundation, and the Denver Clergy Committee, the Sacred Landmarks Preservation program conducted a survey of 25 diverse faith-based congregations in Denver's inner city to find out how they meet the needs of their community. While these congregations reported over 1,350 community programs as occurring in their facilities, many of the buildings are old and they cannot keep up with the physical demands placed on the structures. It became obvious that more must be accomplished to protect, preserve and maintain these important historic structures. The partnership and subsequent efforts are designed to keep inner city historic sacred places functioning as community centers.
State Historical Fund
The State Historical Fund (SHF) is the outcome of a 1990 citizen initiative legalizing limited-stakes gaming in Black Hawk, Central City and Cripple Creek, with the stipulation that 28 percent of these tax revenues would be used to protect Colorado's heritage. In 1993-under the administration of the Colorado Historical Society-SHF began awarding grants to public and non-profit organizations statewide for the purpose of preserving and interpreting Colorado's historic architectural and archeological resources. Types of projects funded include preservation of schools, theaters, agricultural sites, main streets and urban redevelopment initiatives, educational programs, interpretation of historic byways and archeological analysis. To date, SHF has awarded over $125 million in public funds to more than 2400 projects. SHF's contributions have directly benefited the economics of communities throughout Colorado by leveraging additional private funds, creating jobs, stimulating various industries and providing tax revenues.
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