BLOOMINGBURG – The Bloomingburg Restoration Foundation is fighting to prevent the sale of the historic Dutch Reform Church to an Apostolic Pentecostal group from Middletown. Founded in 1821, the church is reported to be the oldest surviving building in Sullivan County, and is on the county, state, and national registers of historic buildings. Furthermore, it is intertwined with the family histories of local residents, going back for nearly two centuries.

The church building, however, is owned by the Town of Mamakating and has long been in need of repairs which the BRF says it cannot afford, the most serious of which are the front bluestone stairs that have been a hazard for over 20 years, and which constitute an insurance liability for the town.

Defending the town board's intent to sell the old church, supervisor Bill Herrmann acknowledged at a meeting in the building this past Sunday, July 16, that some people have expressed "nostalgic dismay" over this decision, and asked the public, "When was the last time you visited the building? When was the last time you donated money to the restoration of this building? And finally, when was the last time the community had any benefit from its use? There are no regular hours, no tourist promotion, and no regular meetings."

Meanwhile, the BRF has begun inviting the public to meetings held every Sunday afternoon at the old church, in order to strategize about how to prevent its sale and to report on current efforts. Recently, members attended a concert at Rock Hill, as well as the Wurtsboro street fair, to inform people of the impending sale and to circulate a petition to save the church. At the meeting last Sunday, it was reported that in less than a week that petition has gained over 600 signatures. It was also noted that the public seemed not to have known that the old church was in contract negotiations to be sold.

Paul Bower, who is on the board of directors for the Middletown Historical Society, has been contacting politicians in Monticello and Albany. He reported that some of them have been very supportive of the BRF's efforts to preserve the old church.

Speaking of the town board, Bower grew overcome with emotion. "What they're doing is just plain evil," he said. "This is our national history!"

BRF trustee Marc Fowler believes that the code violations are the responsibility of the town to remediate, since they are the owners of the building. He acknowledges that there is some dispute on this point, however, since the charter of the BRF states that their purpose is, in part, to take care of the old church building.

More importantly, based on extensive research he has undertaken, Fowler concluded that the town is in contempt of environmental laws since to sell a historic site is a Type 1 action that requires a state environmental review, which the town has not done. Furthermore, Fowler believes that the community has not been adequately informed about the impending sale, which was not on the agenda of any town board meeting, nor was it ever discussed except when members of the BRF brought up the matter at the two most recent meetings during the "public comments" section.

All in all, the members of the BRF feel that their concerns are being ignored by the town board. Even their participation in town meetings seem to have been left out of the official minutes.

Local attorney Alex Smith, who was present at the meeting on Sunday, offered to talk to town attorney Ben Gailey and also review the relation between state environmental laws and the state historical designation in order to determine whether or not the BRF has a case to pursue against the town. Meanwhile, he advised the BRF to make a freedom of information request for a copy of the deed to the church, and for the pending contract to sell it.