A church in El Paso serving as a house of worship for more than 70 years is being listed for sale for $1.6 million.
The First Christian Church, located at 901 Arizona Avenue, measures nearly 31,000 square feet, and includes a more than 3,700 square foot sanctuary with seating space for up to 400 people.
Work got underway in the fall of 1950 on what then was a $287,000 building, designed by the El Paso-based architectural firm of Carroll and Daeuble.
At the time of the structure’s construction the El Paso Times described it as brick building “trimmed in cast stone and terra cotta.” The cornerstone to the structure contained a time capsule of early 1950s church activities and documents.
The interior of the main structure and related buildings includes a large kitchen space, meeting rooms, and series of exquisite stained glass images in the nave.
The larger site, at 1.3-acres, contains a courtyard and playground.
Plans are underway for the congregation of the church to move to another location upon the sale of the church, which may possibly be redeveloped for multifamily housing.
The property is listed with the El Paso offices of the Core Consultants of Real Estate.
According to the International City/County Management Association, an average of more than 1,100 churches per year have closed during the last decade, with the largest segment of those structures reconverted for residential purposes.
By Garry Boulard
