Buffalo Crescent Holdings Inc. has purchased the former St. Ann’s Church located at Broadway and Emslie in Buffalo. They paid $250,000 for the vacant church, St. Ann’s School and St. Ann’s Convent. The corporation is affiliated with Downtown Islamic Center, a Muslim group that has been looking for worship and gathering space in Buffalo since early 2021.
The church was sold by St. Ann’s Roman Catholic Church of Buffalo, N.Y. – an affiliate of the Diocese of Buffalo. St. Ann’s opened in 1886 and was an active parish until 2007, when it merged with Ss. Columbia-Brigid parish. The building has been vacant since 2013.
Plans call for a $22.5 million renovation of the church and its adjoining properties, with the work done in phases over the next few years to turn the church into a community center and the rectory into a health care center, while the school will serve as administrative offices and medical testing labs, all connected to the local Islamic community of Buffalo.
