Saving St. Paul's: The devil is in the details

The 8.65-acre campus of St. Paul's Episcopal Church at 200 Riverside Avenue stands as one of the final remaining undeveloped parcels of land in this corner of Greenwich. However, the future of this green space is currently at a crossroads.

Struggling with financial challenges, the church recently determined that subdividing the campus into residential lots was its only viable path to solvency. The prospect of losing such a rare stretch of open space immediately sparked an outcry from the community, leading to a search for a more creative compromise.

A glimmer of hope emerged recently as St. Paul's Church, the Riverside Association, and the Greenwich Land Trust announced a non-binding letter of intent. This agreement serves as a framework for a conservation deal that could protect a portion of the property from development.

While the announcement is a major milestone for local conservationists, significant hurdles remain—specifically the price tag and the remaining footprint. For the deal to work, the community must raise an initial $5.2 million. It is a large ransom to ask of neighbors to bail out the church just to stop them from over-developing their own land. With the conserved portion still vague, the ultimate number of residential lots remains a mystery.

Between the Lines: The letter of intent stops the clock for now, but, as the saying goes, the devil's in the details.

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