A presentation May 24 updating the public on expansion plans for the University of Maryland BioPark had all the earmarks of such meetings: the slick PowerPoint presentation, the emphasis on the importance of community input, the glowing speeches from local luminaries (in this case, City Councilmember William “Pete” Welch [D-9th District] and state Del. Melvin Stukes [D-44th District]). But then the meeting took an interesting turn: A group of attendees stood one after the other to voice concerns about St. Peter the Apostle Roman Catholic Church, a historic property on South Poppleton Street, near the edge of the BioPark. The Greek Revival church was dedicated in 1844 and it, and its associated buildings—including a rectory, several schools, and a convent—served the many Irish immigrants who moved here to work on the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad. One of the oldest churches in the city, it is on the National Register of Historic Places and was once known as “the mother of the west” (as in West Baltimore). Now some believe the venerable institution is part of a hush-hush deal involving the BioPark.

“There is a substantial rumor in the neighborhood that there are plans to purchase St. Peter’s Church, or the whole St. Peter’s complex,” said Betsey Waters, a member of the Hollins Roundhouse Neighborhood Association and one of about 25 attendees at the BioPark presentation. “I’m curious as to whether there’s any truth to this rumor, or whether we’re just going to pretend it doesn’t exist and then keep going on to the next master plan, the next master plan, until finally it shows up.”

Retired Circuit Judge Thomas Ward—co-founder of the Irish Shrine and Railroad Workers Museum, and veteran of many a preservation battle—is one of the sources of the scuttlebutt. “A little more than three weeks ago, I realized this was happening, even though it’s been going on for quite some time,” he says. Ward alleges the following: that the University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS), which owns the BioPark, is brokering a deal between the Archdiocese of Baltimore and Carter Memorial Church, located at 745 Fayette St., on the western edge of the BioPark. UMMS is to buy St. Peter’s from the archdiocese for $1.25 million. For an unknown sum of money, the Carter Memorial congregation would move to St. Peter’s (which is now only rarely used for mass, but is home to an adult learning center for the developmentally disabled). The BioPark could then expand onto the Carter Memorial property. Ward says he got his information from a variety of sources, including the city’s planning director and various others whose names he says he is not at liberty to reveal.

The official response at the meeting did little to dispel the rumor. “Part of the answer is it’s not in the master plan, because it’s not in the master plan,” lead architect Charlie Wilson said. “There may be a thousand rumors out there, but I’m letting you know it’s not in the master plan.” Jane Shaab, executive director of the BioPark, had even less to say: “We do not have standing to address this.” She suggested contacting Nolan McCoy of the Archdiocese of Baltimore. “He would be delighted to talk with you,” she said.

Ward says he’s tried repeatedly to contact the archdiocese to no avail. “My biggest worry is that they will not protect [St. Peter’s] from alteration or change,” he says. “This is the crossroads of history—the Carrolls [Charles Carroll’s granddaughter funded the construction of several buildings on the property], the railroads, Irish history.”

In May 2009, Ward nominated St. Peter’s as a landmark to the city’s Commission for Historical and Architectural Preservation (CHAP). That December, CHAP endorsed designating the entire complex (though the archdiocese had requested that only the church and rectory be considered). The next step in the landmark process is for the nomination to go to a hearing before the city’s Planning Commission. But “a mysterious silence set in,” Ward says. “Over one year later, I began to wonder why this big silence, and so I began to contact people.”

Planning director Thomas Stosur told Ward that the delay had come at the request of the archdiocese. “They were interested in putting the property on the market and had some concerns about having the entire complex landmarked and whether that might constrain some of the possibilities for future buyers,” Stosur says. “We tend to try and work with property owners to a constructive end and not do something that might compromise their ability to have a deal happen.” Stosur says the Planning Commission will hold a hearing on the landmark designation in either July or August of this year. “I understand there’s deals in the works that are confidential, but from what I’ve been told by some of the parties involved, it should end up with a very good preservation outcome,” he says.

Several weeks ago, Ward says, a confidential source showed him documents from the archdiocese that outlined the proposed deal, including the $1.25 million figure. Rumor of a sale has cropped up elsewhere as well. Local attorney John Murphy has been driving a van for the St. Peter’s parish for 32 years. Several years ago, the churches of St. Martin, St. Peter, and St. Jerome merged and formed a new parish, the Transfiguration Catholic Community. Masses are held at the former St. Jerome’s, under the Rev. Augustine Inwang. Murphy says Inwang announced the sale of St. Peter’s on Saturday, May 7, at 4 o’clock mass.

Inwang did not return calls seeking comment, but Sean Caine, a spokesman for the archdiocese, agreed to answer questions via e-mail. (Numerous phone calls to Pastor Carl Pierce Sr. of Carter Memorial Church and to Nolan McCoy, director of facilities and real estate at the archdiocese were not returned by press time. Jane Shaab, executive director of the BioPark, directed all questions to the archdiocese.) Caine wrote: “Several months ago, the parish was approached by UMMS, which owns the Bio-park, adjacent to St. Peter’s, about the availability of the church and other parish buildings.” But St. Peter’s has not been put on the market for sale and no contract has been signed, he says. The parish is, however, prepared to sell St. Peter’s, according to Caine, in part because of the “exorbitant cost of maintaining the numerous structures on the property.”

In response to questions regarding a deal between the archdiocese, UMMS, and Carter Memorial Church, Caine had only this to say: “The parish has been in discussions with multiple institutions about the future of the property.”

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