Christina Estes/KJZZ

The Monroe Street Abbey at Third Avenue and Monroe Street in downtown Phoenix was built in 1929 as First Baptist Church.

A former Phoenix mayor is asking the City Council to provide money to rehabilitate the former First Baptist Church at Third Avenue and Monroe Street.

A nonprofit led by former mayor and Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard wants a $137,000  grant to help restore columns and plaster walls in the former sanctuary. When it reopens as the Monroe Street Abbey, the sanctuary will be a public courtyard. It’s also expected to have art and entertainment space, along with restaurants and offices. 

Nadine Arroyo Rodriguez/ KJZZ

The exterior of the Monroe Street Abbey on Third Avenue in 2015.

Built in 1929, it’s listed on the National and Phoenix historic property registers as an example of Italian Gothic style with Modern overtones. Rehabilitation work has been underway since a fire seriously damaged the building in 1984.

Phoenix has previously awarded two grants for the project: in 2015, a $82,156 award for roof repairs and structural engineering expenses and, in 2019, a $200,000 grant for stucco and plaster repairs and reconstruction of doors and windows.

If the City Council approves the latest request, the applicant must match the grant dollar-for-dollar and the building will remain as a protected historic site for an additional 25 years through Jan. 15, 2096.

Christina Estes/KJZZ

Rehabilitation efforts are underway at the former First Baptist Church at Third Avenue and Monroe Street in Phoenix.