A historic but deteriorating church in Norfolk’s Park Place neighborhood is on the market for $1.2 million.
The former Christian Temple of Norfolk, a gothic revival building constructed in the 1920s, has been vacant and declining for about 20 years. The architecture includes details such as stained glass windows, ribbed vaults, high-vaulted ceilings and flying buttresses.
Sam Orr, an executive vice president with MacKenzie Commercial Real Estate Services, said in a release the building is a good opportunity for an adaptive reuse project like multifamily housing, student housing or experiential retail.
“Despite its age, the asset maintains strong bones and boasts an exterior that is in excellent condition,” Orr said.
The around 32,000-square-foot building at 303 W. 34th St. was constructed in 1935.
The church was most recently purchased in March 2022 by a group of engineers and contractors who intended to restore it. The group, Deccan Investment Properties, bought the property for $265,000. The extent of work they did is unclear. Orr could not be reached for comment in time for deadline.
Before that, Herring Bank, a lender when another church bought the property in 2009, purchased the building for $691,900 at a November 2021 public auction after that church defaulted on the loan.
The Christian Temple closed in 2006 after attendance had declined for decades.
The sanctuary of what was the Norfolk Christian Temple at W. 34th St. and Llewellyn Avenue in Norfolk July 21, 2022. (Bill Tiernan/The Virginian-Pilot, File)
This isn’t the first church in Park Place to be targeted for redevelopment. In 2024, the Norfolk Redevelopment & Housing Authority approved the redevelopment of the former Park Place Baptist Church building at the corner of West 31st Street and Colonial Avenue into senior housing with the help of Richmond developer The Hanson Co.
And the Virginia General Assembly is currently considering a bill that would make it easier for religious institutions to develop and construct affordable housing on church-owned land.
Trevor Metcalfe, 757-222-5345, trevor.metcalfe@pilotonline.com
https://www.pilotonline.com/2026/02/10/christian-temple-norfolk-church-sale/

