Historic Village Church’s Plan for New Mission Building Stirs Neighborhood Controversy

Nestled in Hudson Street just a few blocks from the Hudson River sits the Church of St. Luke in the Fields. The Episcopal church has been a quintessential West Village gem—charming, historic, and iconic—since its construction in 1821. But the parish hall, which burned down in a 1981 fire, has yet to be rebuilt, and has left the church with four decades’ worth of limited space to conduct outreach programs that support the local community free of charge.

On April 7, 2024, Mother Caroline Stacey published a letter announcing the church’s plan to build an $11.5-million mission building on the corner of Hudson and Christopher streets. The additional space would allow for more frequent and intentional outreach programs, as well as a new program that would provide basic sustenance, clothing, and care for the homeless while run by a Narcan-trained staff.

On April 7, 2025, exactly a year after such plans were announced, a group of West Village community members created a change.org petition to counter this new mission building. They have coined themselves the “Concerned Neighbors.”

In a letter posted alongside the petition, the Concerned Neighbors wrote that they aren’t necessarily opposing the new outreach program as much as the placement and construction of the new mission building.

“The stated intention of making Narcan readily available to more people raises significant questions about the daily use of the mission building and who and how many drug-users it is seeking to aid,” reads a section of the petition. Then later, “We would be very disappointed indeed if this new development compromises the safety and security of so many school-aged children and the neighborhood as a whole.”

The petition cites school-aged children numerous times, referring to the six educational facilities—including St. Luke’s School, PS3 Charrette School, Village Community School, 75 Morton School/MS 297, Bright Horizons, and an NYU dormitory—within blocks of the proposed mission building.

This concern is reflected in the comment section of the petition as well. Ben, one of the signers, wrote, “There are so many less densely populated (by people, by elementary and middle schools . . . ) areas in NYC.” Another user, Dan, commented, “Given the close proximity to several schools, this doesn’t make a lot of sense.”

Other commenters reiterate their respect for St. Luke’s values but are more frustrated with a lack of dialogue between the church and community members. A user going by the name Cameron commented, “This isn’t about opposing shelters or outreach. Many of us support St. Luke’s mission in principle. What’s been frustrating is that multiple parent groups and neighbors have tried to open a dialogue with the church about safety, scale, and transparency.”

Since being created two months ago, the petition has garnered 1,654 signatures. In response to the community’s doubts, St. Luke’s has released a “St. Luke’s Mission Building FAQs” page on their website, clarifying why the new mission building is being built.

“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.”

Mother Caroline Stacey further clarified the building’s purpose in a statement to Straus News. “We are deeply committed to serving our neighbors with integrity, compassion, and openness. Unfortunately, there has been misinformation circulating about our new Mission Building, to which this petition is based. Specifically, that it will serve as a homeless shelter or injection site. This is unequivocally false,” wrote Mother Stacey. “The Mission Building is designed to provide much-needed space for our long-standing programs, which include worship services, intergenerational gatherings, senior support, children’s tutoring, and cultural offerings such as art, music, and film.”

The Church’s current outreach programs include The Go Project, where NYC public school students are supported throughout their early education years; Community Closet, which provides clothing and hygiene products to those in need; and Arts and Acceptance, offering a safe space and community for LGBTQ+ and BIPOC drop-ins.

“These programs . . . are vital to our mission and to the fabric of this community,” Mother Stacey told Straus News. “We are actively engaging with neighbors to clarify the facts and welcome ongoing dialogue as we move forward together.”

The 204-year-old church has a long and storied history. The original church building was built in the Federal style and was intended to be reminiscent of an English village church. The parish name “in the Fields” was intended to evoke the pastoral quality of the area, which was largely rural and served as a place of refuge for people seeking relief from the many yellow fever epidemics that plagued the city in the 19th century. The building was twice damaged by fire, in 1886 and again on March 6, 1981, which gutted the church, which was rebuilt by 1985. It sits in the Greenwich Village Historic District, and in 2000 its garden received a Village Award from the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation. It had a tradition of distributing food for the poor after the 10am service on Saturdays and was big on administering to victims of HIV/AIDS. It holds a choral Evensong each year after the Pride Day March.

The church was also used as the setting for the critically acclaimed Scott Rudin film Doubt in 2008, starring Meryl Streep, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Amy Adams, and Viola Davis, perhaps adding to the rumblings that the church is haunted.

Regarding the latest controversy, Straus News reached out to City Council Member Erik Bottcher on the matter, but his office had not responded by press time. Community Board 2 also had not responded to an email seeking comment.