Eastern Star Church has agreed to withdraw its petition to demolish a 113-year-old church building on the former Martin University campus.
Howard Stevenson, lawyer for Eastern Star Church, told Mirror Indy that Eastern Star is working with the Indianapolis Historic Preservation Commission and Indiana Landmarks to get to an āamicable resolution.ā
āWe’ve just decided to continue that discussion at this time,ā Stevenson said. āAnd in the interim period of time, we’ve decided to hold off on proceeding with demolition.ā
Martin University closed at the end of 2025. Eastern Star Church purchased the former campus in May and renamed it the ROCK Impact Center.
Get the backstory
On Aug. 7, a contractor filed a wrecking permit to demolish the former St. Francis de Sales Catholic Church on Martinās campus. In response, the Indianapolis Historic Preservation Commission voted to grant historic status to the church building. That put the demolition on hold.Ā
But historic designation ā and a preservation plan for church ā needs to be approved by the Metropolitan Development Commission.Ā
The commission had previously planned to vote on whether to grant historic designation to the church building at its Oct. 21 meeting. But due to requests from both the city and Eastern Star, the vote was postponed to the Nov. 18 meeting.Ā Ā
Meg Busch, administrator for the cityās Historic Preservation Commission, said postponing the vote to Nov. 18 will allow for a building assessment for the former church to be completed.Ā
St. Francis de Sales Catholic Church was established in 1881 and its current building was constructed in 1913. For over a century, the church and an attached Catholic school served eastside families. It closed in 1983, largely because of declining membership caused by the construction of the I-70 interstate, according to the Archdiocese of Indianapolis.Ā
Martin University moved into the former church building in 1987. For many years, the former church served as Martinās performing arts center, according to the cityās historic preservation plan.Ā
Mirror Indy, a nonprofit newsroom, is funded through grants and donations from individuals, foundations and organizations.
Claire Rafford covers higher education for Mirror Indy in partnership with Open Campus. Contact Claire by email claire.rafford@mirrorindy.org, at 317-759-0249 or on most social media @clairerafford.
Republish our articles for free, online or in print, under a Creative Commons license.
