Three very prominent and distinctly different Island Parsonages are to be soon offered for sale.
As the progressive and wide ranging reorganisation of the Island’s parishes continues apace it has become evident that the parsonages at Andreas, Bride and Patrick are now surplus to the housing requirements in these parishes.
With the pastoral reorganisation almost complete in the West of the Island the Bishop, Archdeacon and the Diocesan Board of Finance have made the decision that the beautiful property of Patrick Vicarage set in its own peaceful grounds will be offered for public.
As parishioners in the two, soon to be formed parishes of Andreas, Ballaugh, Jurby and Sulby and of Bride, Lezayre and North Ramsey have recognised the need for their own pastoral reorganisation and have shaped the form and progress of this it also became evident that both Bride Rectory and Andreas Vicarage were also surplus to housing requirement.
Both of these houses are splendid properties with much potential, but, for the Diocese, the house in Bride is too large and expensive to maintain for a vicarage in the future and its location means that it is on the edge of the parish, and the house in Andreas is not well-suited under present housing guidelines for use as a vicarage.
The sale of vicarages such as these often invokes comment from the community, both negative and positive. Change always has this effect upon us.
Places such as vicarages, often so prominent in community life and in their geographic location are special. For some, the sale into private hands of these properties always seems to challenge our comfortable notions of what a vicarage may be, while for others to see the improvement and preservation of them it brings with it that sense of new beginning and new life.
It has to be noted that often, these large, old properties are expensive to maintain, repair and also for the clergy who live in them very expensive to heat. In our ecologically sensitive world it is appropriate that the church looks to modern housing developments in utilising the latest in building technology.
All the funds from the sales of these vicarages will be returned to the Diocesan Board of Finance for use in its Parsonages fund, after deductions have been made so that the parishes which have spent capital sums on the properties over the past decade can be reimbursed for their work in the careful maintenance of them.
- Ends -
