Museum expands to church next door

The building also could be used as a community arts performance center.
By DAVID SKOLNICK
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- The purchase of the former church next door will provide the Butler Institute of American Art with much-needed space for storage and offices, and to greatly expand its art education programs, the museum's executive director says.
The Wick Avenue art museum bought the former First Christian Church, opened in 1934, for $427,000, said Dr. Louis A. Zona, the Butler's executive director. The 20,337-square-foot church closed its doors in November 2004 and merged with the Boardman Christian Church. The museum already has 120,000 square feet.
"This is a very important acquisition for us," Zona said. "We've always thought that if the church should ever become available, it would be perfect for an expansion."
The institute used money left to it by Gayle Dennison, who died last year, to buy the former church. Her father, Carl, was a prominent local businessman and the former president of the Butler's board of directors. He died in 1987.
The former church will be called the Dennison Education Center of the Butler Institute of American Art. The building will open in late fall or early winter, Zona said.
The Butler has very limited art education programs, offered primarily in its basement, because of a lack of space, Zona said.
More classes
Once Dennison opens, it will offer more art courses as well as classes on dancing, yoga, and activities for senior citizens, Zona said. This will increase the number of people taking museum courses and help the Butler financially, he said.
Carl Dennison had discussions about 25 years ago with the church council about buying its property and moving and expanding the Butler's educational offerings particularly for senior citizens, Zona said.
The new building will provide additional storage space for some of its 20,000 works of art as well as crates, tables, chairs, packing materials and other items, Zona said.
The two buildings are connected at their basements through an underground tunnel that will make moving items easier, Zona said. The church end of the tunnel is bricked and will be reopened, he said.
The new building also will ease crowded office space for Butler employees, Zona said.
Performance center
One key aspect of the Dennison Education Center will be its use as a community arts performance center, Zona said.
"People could use it in a variety of ways," he said. "We can host meetings for community groups. We can have lectures and performances there. Also, people could use it for weddings. We can do a lot of different things with that space."
The Butler, opened in 1919, also wants Youngstown State University, a neighbor of the museum and the former church, to use the facility, particularly for its music, art and theater programs, Zona said.
Officials from the Butler and YSU's College of Fine and Performing Arts held informal discussions about using the building for classrooms and/or rehearsal space, said Ron Cole, a university spokesman. YSU officials liked what they saw during a tour of the building, but haven't signed a formal agreement at this time, he said.
The building is in good condition, Zona said, but some improvements are needed. The most expensive improvement is upgrading the three-story building's elevator, estimated to cost $175,000, he said. Also, general improvements such as rewiring and painting are needed, he said.
"We hope to get the community involved to support us financially with these improvements," Zona said. "The potential is enormous."
Church is satisfied
Declining membership in the church's congregation caused it to leave Youngstown and merge with the Boardman Christian Church, said Rick Shale, a church trustee and its point person on negotiations to sell the building.
"When we decided to sell the building, we felt YSU and the Butler were the likely ones to purchase it," he said. "The Butler came up with the money and the vision. We're excited by that vision and that the church will be well used."
The congregation started at a small wooden building on Youngstown's public square in 1841, and built a church in 1873 on Wood Street, taken in 1933 by eminent domain for $200,000 to build a railroad track. The congregation spent $205,000 in 1934 to build the neo-Gothic style stone church on Wick Avenue.