Church case lives on in the courts

Albany

As a supermarket rises where Watervliet's historic St. Patrick's Church once stood, a midlevel appeals court heard arguments Wednesday about issues surrounding the sale of the church in 2012.

At the heart of the case is who has legal standing to decide the fate of the church. Under the New York's Religious Corporation Law, a church corporation has that role.

But Citizens for St. Patrick's contends that its members who donated money to repair the church's copper roof with a promise that St. Patrick's would stay open have the needed legal standing to contest any sale of the property of the church.

St. Patrick's Church of West Troy, a corporation affiliated with the Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany, sold the 3.5-acre site with the church and related buildings to PCP Watervliet LLC, a subsidiary of the Nigro Companies, on Dec. 31, 2012.

The citizens group sued unsuccessfully to overturn acting state Supreme Court Justice Kimberly A. O'Connor's approval of the Dec. 31, 2012 sale of the church for $1 million.

The church was torn down in 2013.

On Wednesday before the Appellate Division of state Supreme Court, Rosemary Nichols, the attorney for the citizens group, said state law pertaining to nonprofit organizations should apply in giving the group standing in legal matters.

Nichols was questioned repeatedly Wednesday by Presiding Justice Karen K. Peters as to why a fraud lawsuit was not pursued.

Nichols replied that such a suit would not have been expedient.

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Church case lives on in the courts