Since 1820, St. Luke’s has been focused on its mission to worship, witness, learn, grow, and serve, creating Jesus’ embrace through outreach, arts, educational programs and the sanctuary of our church and gardens.

We’re proud to have served our community for over 200 years, offering food, clothing, and vital programs for seniors, families, and under-resourced youth. We welcome and support all people, regardless of race, religion, income, sexuality, or health. We've done this work both independently and in partnership with many trusted community organizations.

Now, we’re excited to begin planning a new space at Hudson and Christopher Streets, which will allow us to grow and strengthen the mission-driven services we provide to the neighborhood.

We understand there’s been some misinformation shared about this project. Below are answers to frequently asked questions that we hope will clarify our intentions.

Why is St. Luke’s pursuing this project?

We are in need of more open, indoor space to properly provide services to our neighbors in need and to gather as a community. Our goal is also to provide community programming and gathering opportunities for all of our neighbors. Programming for seniors, films, children’s programming, arts and cultural programming are ideas we’re considering.

Since St.Luke’s parish hall was never rebuilt after the 1981 fire, we are limited to using the meeting room in our parish house and Laughlin Hall  for all Mon- Fri programs and gatherings. When St. Luke's School is in session, we lose access to shared spaces like the school dining room, auditorium, and kitchen—restricting our larger gatherings to evenings and weekends. Even on weekends, our programs are frequently canceled due to scheduling conflicts with weddings, funeral receptions, during major church holidays like Christmas and Easter, or parish events like our Icon Workshop.

School testing or construction during the summer often disrupts full-day community programs like the church’s GO Project at St. Luke’s for under-served elementary school kids. Inclement weather can also make Laughlin Hall inaccessible, where we currently run our Community Closet.

What programs will be in the new building?

The new building will be a purpose-built large flexible gathering space that will hold many of our current programs for spiritual growth and worship, inter-generational programming, senior programming, tutoring for children, art and culture, music, and film screenings. These include Tea at Three, The GO Project, and seasonal icon workshops. In addition, we plan to offer the space to community organizations such as block associations.

Will the building be a homeless shelter?

No. Individuals will not be able to reside in the space and the building will be closed overnight.

If you are expanding the space to accommodate more individuals, does that mean more people will be served?

For so many of our current gatherings and community programs, we are short on space, storage and possibility. The new facility will provide the essential space we need. We hope that more people will volunteer, access our programs and services, and gather as a community. This aligns directly with our mission to serve. We understand that some community members have raised concerns about safety, and we want to assure everyone that the well-being of our facility and the surrounding neighborhood remains a top priority for the Church.

Why do you have Narcan on site?

Like many community facilities, businesses, and households, we keep Narcan in our first aid kits as a precaution in case of an overdose emergency. A few staff members are trained in its use, following standard safety practices. Importantly, we do not distribute Narcan during our programs or at any other time. While Narcan has been on site for almost a decade, we have never had to use it.

How will the new building ensure the safety of the school and local residents?

We will be providing a dedicated security staff for the new building, as well as a modern camera system. The building will not be left open overnight and will be appropriately staffed whenever it is in use.

How will you mitigate construction noise and disruption?

To mitigate noise:
A noise mitigation plan will be submitted to the Department of Environmental Protection prior to commencement of work. All NYC noise rules and regulations will be followed. The job site will be completely enclosed with DOB approved perimeter fire rated plywood construction fence. All loading and unloading areas will be enclosed with DOT approved water-filled moveable barricades with fence and mesh on top.

Any loud work will be performed between the hours of 8:00am and 4:30pm during the work week. Any Pile drivers, hoe rams, and excavators used will be of quieter makes and models.

To mitigate dust:
A Department of Environmental Protection, dust Mitigation plan will be created and followed on site as per Rules of New York City prior to commencement or work. Wetting will be the main form of dust control with hand held hoses. Adequate and continuous supply of water distributed by a hose system. All areas of work will be sprayed down before work starts and continuously sprayed as work continues up until 30 minutes after work has ceased. Any debris or soil piles will be wet down throughout the day. When debris and soil removal is to take place, a hose will be dedicated to wetting down all debris and soil being removed to ensure no dust during removal process.

What is the time frame for construction?

We intend to break ground on June 15, 2026 and the church moves in November 11, 2027.

Where will the kids at the St. Luke's School play?

We are working closely with the St. Luke’s School leadership and landscaping contractor to craft an outdoor play space on the block, on our grounds. This includes re-imagining the area by the statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the amphitheater and the South Garden.

What will the building look like?

The new building will be a single-story, ground floor building with a green roof.

Why can’t the church repurpose one of the townhouses for our mission building?

Revenue from our townhouse rentals is necessary in funding our mission-driven programs. These resources help ensure that St. Luke’s remains a lasting source of support and service to the community for generations to come.

Also, to generate the same large, flexible gathering space needed for programming and kitchen, we would need to combine 3 townhouses, gut and renovate the interiors, and add an elevator and egress points, at minimum. Professionals we have consulted estimate that this would cost more than building the new space, in addition to the loss of rental income.

The footprint of the proposed mission building was included as part of a master plan submitted for LPC approval a decade ago. In our current plan, St Luke’s reduces the height of the building from the original, approved plan to only one story.