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DOWNTOWN BROOKL YN REAL ESTA TECarroll Gardens Church Lovingly Transformed Into Unique Apartments:Church Meets the HPartners Frank G uido (left) and Paul B ennici (Phoenix/Koch Photo)The challenge was to retain the beauty andelegance offered by the vaulted ceilings, whilecontaining them in duplex apartments.BY LIZ KOCHWith many churches suffering a depletion in their congregation on one hand and New York City residents suffering from a scarcity of housing on the other, the paths of the two situations are beginning to cross.Although seemingly disparate, this loss of one group and gain in another, developers are finding that some empty churches can be imaginatively converted into apartments, using such architectural features as bell towers and vaulted ceilings. The resulting units offer a very unique living environment indeed.The latest such effort in the area began two years ago when three men, Frank Guido, a Carroll Gardens undertaker, Paul Bennici, a contractor who is a 30-year resident of the area, and Umberto Guido decided to go into partnership and buy the underused Old Westminister Church at the comer of Clinton Street and First Place in Carroll Gardens. It was latest the home of the Norwegian Seaman%u2019s Church, which has since relocated to Manhattan.To sum up the uniqueness of converting a church into a living space, and to explain the underlying concepts that guided the design as well as structural changes in the building, Frank Guido says quite simply but emphatically, %u201cWe%u2019re not talking about a brownstone square building, we%u2019re talking about a church!%u201dThe challenge then was to retain the beauty and elegance offered by the vaulted ceilings, while containing them in duplex apartments; to build a room in the bell tower; and to fit an elevator into what was once the high arched vault of the church; not to mention converting one large center space into four levels of condominiums.For Bennici, who has been building in Carroll Gardens for 30 years and has more than that number of houses to his name, the project has become not only a project for profit but, more importantly, what he assesses as a gift to the neighborhood, and what Guido calls a labor of love.%u201cI remember 30 years ago when there was junk and empty lots all over the place,%u201d Benicci says. %u201cI helped build this neighborhood, Carroll G irdens. We lived all our life in this neighborhood and we wanted to do something better for the neighborhood,%u201d he says. %u201cIt%u2019s a creation, not just a piece of square building,%u201d he adds. Guido remarks with a smile that indeed the building is a %u201clabor of love and it took a lot out of us. My hair turned white.%u201dThe church turned condominium is nearing completion at an inspection visit in midMay and the last touches are being put down. The floors of the apartments already shine with their new coat of polyurethane, but the hallways still await the finishing work.The building now contains 35 residential units and two professional apartments, made up of mostly multi-level living spaces. Some of the units retain the vaulted interior design and some model new windows installed in the framework of the former arched church windows.There are panoramic views of the Manhattan skyline from some apartments along with a view of ships in the harbor, and columns make up the architecture of some living rooms while, the original A-frame of the church makes its presence known in an odd bathroom or two.The penthouse in the tower of the building contains spiral staircases leading to different levels and the original 145-year old 14-inch pine beam cuts across the ceiling. One element the developers took into consideration was the size of the apartments and a duplex studio certainly breaks the traditional one room mold with its dining room, kitchen, loft bedroom and full bath.%u201cEach apartment is like a townhouse in a%u00a3%u00bbr%u00bbnt hit/ hnilHino %u201d OuiHn p xn ln in s %u201c W ehave the different levels, we have the underground garage and the interiors are designed so that light falls into the different levels.%u201dWhen the three purchased the building two years ago, they did not know quite whatthey were getting into. %u201cThe more we built the more we found changes that needed to be made,%u201d Guido says, and to date the estimated total cost far the purchase of the building and the renovations stands at almost $5 million.%u201cFortunately, anytime we called the architect he would come back, and eventually it turned out that every apartment was designed differently. There are no two alike,%u201d Guido says. %u201cWe had to create every room with a view and fireproof all the walls.%u201d As another little detail to preserving the elegance of the building, Bennici points out the marble staircases leading from one floor to another.The two also worked to landscape the exterior park to which each resident will have a key, and retained the Norwegian influence in the garden. %u201cThe birch trees here were planted by the Norwegians,%u201d Guido explains. %u201cIt is the Norwegian tree.%u201dAnd for a little of their own culture%u2019s influence, the two chose tiles from Italy to line the bathroom walls up to the ceiling. Bennicci says the neighbors have responded to his work. %u201cEverybody who sees it has the same answer. It%u2019s a beautiful job and no one could have done it better.%u201dBennicci, who arrives on the worksite at 6am and stays there for a good twelve hours, points out that the outside of the building has almost been completely restored. In addition, the two dug the garage themselves. %u201cThe auditorium was built on a slab and we removed the slab and had to dig beneath every section and underpin it,%u201d Guido explains.The apartments, ranging in price from approximately $170,000 to $350,000 have now been half sold. And Benicci%u2019s final remark on the construction is: %u201cWe want to do better for the neighborhood and if I make a few dollars, that%u2019s nice, and if I don%u2019t I still know that everyone thinks it%u2019s a beautiful lob.%u201dFor more information and to make an appointment to view the co-ops, call the sponsor, 33 First Place Corporation, at 852-2324, or 855-7878.%u25a0May 29, 1986, THE PHOENIX, Page 29