One of the city’s most noteworthy residential properties is going on the market. Bishop Richard J. Malone announced that the Bishop’s Residence at 77 Oakland Place will be sold, with proceeds from the sale going to the Diocese of Buffalo’s Independent Reconciliation & Compensation Program to assist victims of past sexual abuse by priests.
The plan is for the residence to go on the market this summer. 77 Oakland Place (Georgia Forman House – designed by E.B. Green) is about as eye-catching as it gets, when it comes to historic Buffalo properties.
“This move underscores the importance we place on helping the victims of abuse to begin healing,” said Bishop Malone, noting that he consulted with the diocesan Finance Council, College of Consultors and the Presbyteral Council in making this decision.
After the sale, the Bishop’s Residence will be the former convent at St. Stanislaus Parish on Townsend Street. The new residence will also be used for small events.
“I am proud to move to the heart of Buffalo’s Polonia,” noted Malone. “Especially as a way to be a small part of the renewal that is happening in so many ways in the Broadway-Fillmore neighborhood.”
A description of 77 Oakland is as follows:
The Bishop’s Residence, also built in 1928, was designed by architect E.B. Green for the Forman family. The property was sold to the Diocese of Buffalo in 1952 and has been the residence for six of Buffalo’s bishops as well as priests serving on their staffs. The grand Tudor manor house features four massive stone chimneys, slate roof and a separate apartment above the five-car garage.
Along with the prominent 77 Oakland address, the Diocese of Buffalo will also be selling the Sheehan Residence for retired priests on Linwood Avenue – 336 Linwood (built in 1928).
Funds from the sale of this property (12 suite-style units) will be directed towards funding the Retired Diocesan Priests’ Medical Benefits Fund.
The three-story brick building at Linwood & Utica was originally built in 1928 as the rectory for what was then St. Joseph’s RC New Cathedral on Delaware Avenue.
The building was originally constructed as the rectory of St. Joseph Cathedral, which was demolished in the 1970’s.
Lead photo: Dan Cappellazzo – WNY Catholic Staff Photographer