A former church and rectory previously owned by the Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh is for sale in Duquesne.
The former Holy Name Church, located at 32 S. First St., is listed by Nicholas Haller of Agresti Real Estate, based in Erie, for $349,900.
The current asking price has been slashed to sell, reduced by more than $500,000 since the original listing in May with an asking price of $899,900.
The former church is owned by Matt Evans. The listing includes three distinct parcels that include a rectory with 10 bedrooms, a parking lot for 24 vehicles, a basement with enabled technology and a church.
Evans said he may consider taking the property off the market, but is testing the real estate waters.
“We’ve had lots of inquiries, but it just hasn’t sold yet. We lowered the price just to see what the market will bear,” Evans said.
Haller said Wednesday the property could be transformed for a multitude of uses.
The former church, built in 1900, is suitable for redevelopment and could include another church, B&B, office rentals, warehouse, self-storage or other business uses.
“Reimagine and revitalize,” Haller wrote in his listing for the property.
“It can be used for anything but worshipping the devil,” he quipped Wednesday.
The church contents are gone, Haller said. The property is located near Kennywood.
Holy Name was originally called St. Killian and was established in 1890. The 5,800-square-foot rectory has six bathrooms and three fireplaces.
A fire destroyed the first church in 1899 and the existing church was constructed and renamed Holy Name. The first Mass there took place in December 1900.
The new church cost about $50,000 and was built with Pompeian vitrified brick with Cleveland sandstone trimmings and accommodated 800 worshipers, according to information provided in a 1966 University of Pittsburgh article about the church, including the news of a donated $6,000 pipe organ, a gift from Andrew Carnegie.
In 1928, lightning struck the church steeple and it was never replaced.
The Diocese provided a closing update to the parish in April 2023, citing a low average church attendance of 50, high operating church costs of almost $100,000, the need for a new roof, deteriorating plaster and a substantial leak in the church bell tower as reasons for the closure.
Annual taxes are a little over $12,000, according to online real estate records.
A public Facebook group named Holy Name Church Memories (Duquesne, PA) was created last year and is dedicated to sharing fond memories and stories about the former church.