By Brian Denitzio
News Editor

Almost two years to the day that the Archdiocese of Boston first informed parishioners of St. William's parish that their church would be suppressed, the first formal meeting to discuss the disposition of the parish's buildings at 1048 Dorchester Ave. took place. Nearly 60 former parishioners and concerned residents gathered Tuesday evening in the hall of the Blessed Mother Teresa School for the first of what will likely be a series of meetings regarding the future of the St. William's site.

The meeting was organized by Father Paul Soper, pastor of Blessed Mother Teresa Parish, who, if the property is sold, will name the winning bidder.

"I know a lot of people are coming with a lot of ideas about what has happened and about what needs to happen," said Soper at the start of the meeting, encouraging the audience to focus their attention and energies on the future use of the church, rather than the process by which it was closed.

A number of ideas were proposed, with a few themes emerging, in particular the notion that the future use of the site should benefit the wider community and allow for the sustainability of Blessed Mother Teresa Parish and its school on Savin Hill Ave.

Grace Carney, a student at the school, was one of the evening's final speakers and codified this idea.

"I think something that could be profitable, but good for the community [would be best]," said Carney, underscoring that the future financial health of Blessed Mother Teresa is tied up in the decision.

"If anything predominates, it should be something of service to the community," said Mary Hogan, a former parishioner of St. William's and one of a group that launched a two-year appeal to save the parish.

Suggestions of uses that community members consider beneficial to the neighborhood included a library, a school, a senior service facility, and artist lofts. Residential developments for the most part seemed to be in disfavor. One speaker cited the high number of for sale condominiums currently on the market in Dorchester, and said he would favor a space that would aid in community building.

It appeared that much emotion is still tied up in the fact that future development on the site will likely mean the demolition of the church building itself.

Hiep Chu, a former parishioner said that even now, when he drives past the locked doors of the church, he feels pangs of emotion.

"Whenever we see the building, it's not just a building, it's a part of our history," said Chu. But Chu, like many former parishioners, said he recognize that in all likelihood a future use will not preserve the building.

Soper left the agenda for Tuesday's meeting intentionally open, with no developers making formal presentations. Instead he asked for ideas, no matter how general or far-fetched; future meetings would be used for more specific discussions. He explained that the Archdiocese has enlisted a real estate agency to aid in the sale, or possibly long-term lease of the buildings. The Boston-based, Codman Company is completing marketing materials for the site and the company's initial estimates set a price of $3 million for the nearly 40,000-sq.ft. parcel.

Soper explained the possible outcomes, as well as the considerations that will inform his decision about what is the best use of the site. In the event of a sale, a fee of 4 percent will be paid to Codman, and after approximately $250,000 in debt accrued by Blessed Mother Teresa is paid off, the remaining money will go into an Archdiocese fund, and be available for withdrawal by Blessed Mother Teresa. If the property is leased, Soper will have less of a role in determining the use of the site, and a 2 percent fee will be paid to the Archdiocese, annually.

Soper will make the final decision regarding the use of the site, and explained that he intends on making that decision in concert with his parish council, and after obtaining input through public meetings such as the one on Tuesday. So far, no proposals have been submitted, he said, and suggested that a second meeting would likely be appropriate in a month's time.