Portland church renovation a labor of love | Two Falmouth restaurateurs put their faith in a $2 million renovation of a historic landmark
Photo/Brandon McKenney
A centerpiece rose window defines the doorway of the Chestnut Street Church, which owners Peter and Anne Verrill plan to convert into a restaurant. The 19th century stained-glass panel to the left was removed for repairs.
The nave
The balcony
The brownstone
The musical pipes
The pews
The basement
The new wine cellar
Walking into an old Gothic church evokes a visceral response. These well-worn places of worship, so often drafty and gloomy, can cause a creeping chill, or perhaps lead to a twinge of reassurance and a lifting of the spirit.
The 152-year-old Chestnut Street Church in Portland, which is currently being rehabilitated into an upscale restaurant, is one of those architectural masters that stir up strong reactions. The brick-and-brownstone Gothic Revival church was designed to awe its occupants and reinforce their faith: Soaring wooden arches leap down its long sanctuary to an ornate, white altar meant to be a replica of the church façade, but rather resembles a wedding cake for giants. Light seeps into the church through a series of stained-glass windows shaped like spears, and a massive rose window imported from Florence in the mid-1800s glows above the church's main doorway.
Peter and Anne Verrill bought the church in 2007 for $675,000 after its Methodist congregation had abandoned it two years prior. Already the successful owners of the Foreside Tavern in Falmouth, the couple wanted to transform the church into a new restaurant called Grace. But the building didn't have working electricity, gas or water; its brownstone façade was badly weathered; and the walls had gaping holes exposing brick. To help pay for the restoration, they applied for state and federal historic tax credits.
Returning the Chestnut Street Church to its original condition will cost the Verrills $2 million. Hallowell-based conservation consultant Amy Cole Ives, who has worked with the Verrills on their project, says most historic rehabilitations cost 20% to 25% more than regular restoration jobs. Yet the tax credits, which will cover 45% of the Verrills' investment, are designed to make the preservation of antique buildings financially feasible and competitive with new construction.
Anne Verrill says the historic tax credits will allow the couple to invest $500,000 more into the church than they had originally planned, helping them inject Old World splendor into their nascent business. "The potential is enormous," she says. "When we first went into the church, we knew. We looked at it and said it would be the most amazing space ever."
Following are a series of photographs of the church renovation by Mainebiz photo intern Brandon McKenney:
Currently obscured in scaffolding set up to support painters, the nave is wide open, with two rows of wooden columns forming two side aisles with balconies. Spending roughly $150 per square foot, the Verrills will convert the 5,000-square-foot first floor into a kitchen and dining room, with a capacity for at least 100 diners. They plan to build a free-standing bar next to an open kitchen set in front of the semi-circular apse. The bar will be shaped like the church’s trefoil windows, carved to look like stylized three-petal flowers. These windows — two are set on either side of the church’s rose window — will also become Grace’s logo, Peter Verrill says.
All the heating, ventilation and sprinkler systems in the dining room need to be hidden, according to state and federal historic regulations. “We had to make it completely modern without showing anything,” Anne Verrill says. “The venting is tucked into the archways.”
Construction on the church began in August, and the Verrills expect the restaurant to be open by April. Anne Verrill says she anticipates sales for the restaurant next year will be around $2 million.
The balcony, which wraps around the nave on three sides, will hold more tables and another bar and lounge area. The south balcony, pictured here, will be connected to the kitchen below by a new staircase so waiters can deliver dishes promptly to patrons. The floor will be leveled as well. Architect Dean Bingham here shows Anne Verrill some of his notes. The two are standing in front of one of the church's two trefoil windows that have been removed for restoration by a local glass specialist.
The 70-foot-wide church façade, looking out on a small side street, was built in 1856 with brick and brownstone trim. Today, the façade appears flat because the brownstone has worn down over the years, but at one time the church’s face was sculpted with columns, arches and other ornamental detail. The Verrills are restoring the façade with a mixture of real brownstone and a restoration mortar mix that contains cement, according to historic consultant Cole Ives. Fixing the exterior will cost roughly $600,000, Anne Verrill says.
The musical pipes shown below are part of the church’s organ, most of which has been removed. The Chestnut Street Church is distinguished by being the first Methodist church in the United States to have an organ, according to the Verrills’ tax credit application.
The church once held up to 500 congregants and still contains a few original heavy pews painted to resemble dark, grainy wood, which the Verrills will use for some table seating after the benches have been upholstered in leather.
Lit with fluorescent panels and empty save for a few folded tables and work stations for contractors, the church’s basement is the least impressive part of the church. But its delicate architectural details could help the Verrills turn this space into what they say will be a tasteful function room illuminated with chandeliers for weddings or conferences. Many of the bay windows, which are shaped as long, thin arches, still have their original glass panes, which, depending on their age, are wavier and blurrier than others. The Verrills will refinish the wood floor and a build a second kitchen downstairs. The church basement also has additional smaller rooms, once used as offices, classrooms and the church nursery. The Verrills plan to refinish and rent one as a private meeting space with a flat-screen television and Internet connection.
The Chestnut Street Church has two tall brick towers that were once topped with wooden spires that reached 110 feet, but were dismantled for safety reasons more than 50 years ago. The Verrills will use these circular towers as wine cellars, with semi-circular racks of wine affixed to the walls. Peter Verrill says every part of the church, including these towers, is structurally sound. “It’s bomb proof,” he claims.
The Chestnut Street Church is adorned with two windows shaped as trefoils, or more specifically triquetras, an ancient symbol made of three overlapping almond-like shapes that symbolizes unity. The stained glass inside the window frames has been removed for restoration. The trefoil is a common design in Gothic architecture.
Rebecca Goldfine, Mainebiz staff writer, can be reached at editorial@mainebiz.biz.
Brandon McKenney, a photo intern in the Mainebiz design department, can be reached at jholder@mainebiz.biz.
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