Former church, now made into condos, on the market

June 21, 2007|by JENNIFER FITCH

WAYNESBORO, Pa. - A circa-1900 church at 20 S. Potomac St. in Waynesboro has had many lives, the latest of which again finds it on the real estate market.

The St. Paul Reformed Church has been listed for sale both in its entirety, at $950,000, and as eight condominium units priced from $135,000 to $235,000.

Owner Joe Daniels bought the property in the late 1990s and has been rehabilitating the units, which are currently being rented, Realtor Violet Schmid said. He developed a sentimental attachment to the property but requested it be subdivided last year to be sold as condominiums, she said.

"He's really ready to move them now," Schmid said.

Files in the town library report the church's cornerstone was laid on June 15, 1902, and it later became Antrim Faith Baptist Church. A fire in 1988 gutted the stone building.

The property changed hands several times and ended up in foreclosure, when Daniels purchased it.

One of the property owners cut out the middle of the church, creating a courtyard walkway using its own bricks as pavement. Two streetlights are in the center.

"This is so unique," Schmid said. "It's like a Williamsburg (Va.) cobblestone street. It's the best secret in Waynesboro."

Two- and three-bedroom units front the courtyard; one unit has an attached mother-in-law suite.

"The tower, we made into one bedroom," Schmid said. A spiral staircase stretches three levels, she said.

While the condominiums have modern appliances and some have central air conditioning, many reminders remain of the original use. Stained glass can be found in bathrooms and kitchens, and brick walls are mixed with drywall.

"Anywhere he could, he did exposed beams," Schmid said.

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