07/02/2026
Yesterday I walked through a building that I have not been able to stop thinking about.
David Stumpf Architecture met with the owners of Saint Francis de Sales Church at 575 Humboldt Parkway in Buffalo to talk through the possibility of bringing this extraordinary building back to life as a wedding venue. We toured the building, assessed the conditions, and we are now drafting a proposal to make it happen.
Here is what we are working with:
The building was designed in 1928 by George Dietel, the same architect who designed Buffalo City Hall, in collaboration with Washington DC firm Murphy and Olmsted. It is 23,130 square feet of Italian Romanesque Revival architecture built entirely of Indiana limestone with no structural steel. A 140 foot campanile tower. A polychrome barrel vaulted ceiling by the Raphael Guastavino Company. Mosaics on the interior walls inspired by the ancient churches of Ravenna, Italy. And at the crossing of the nave and transept, a dome with an oculus that pulls natural light deep into the sanctuary. At the right time of day it casts a beam of light into the space that no artificial lighting could ever come close to replicating.
This is a moment built into the architecture of the building itself, one meant to inspire awe. For us it becomes a once in a lifetime wedding moment. Imagine a first dance in the center of the room, lit by a natural spotlight, and directed by the building itself.
The building has been abandoned since 2013 and the challenges are real and significant. The limestone exterior shows evidence of what appears to be improper pressure washing or sandblasting at some point in its history, which likely destroyed the mortar joints across the entire exterior and stripped the protective layer from the stone, allowing water to work its way behind the facade at multiple points. The apse roof behind the sanctuary has lost its protective covering. Two of the three rear ceramic tile domes have lost their tile and are fully exposed to the elements. The basement has active water infiltration. The interior has been stripped of nearly everything.
This is a serious project. It is also a Buffalo landmark and a contributing structure in the Hamlin Park Historic District on both the State and National Registers of Historic Places, which means historic rehabilitation tax credits are available to help offset the rehabilitation cost.
The vision is not drop ceilings and bare drywall. It is restoring what this building was always capable of being and creating an experience that every bride, every guest, and every person who walks through those doors remembers for the rest of their lives. The architecture does the work. Our job is to bring it back.
We are drafting the proposal now. Stay tuned.
If you have worked on a project like this, dealt with historic limestone in a similar state, or have experience with masonry restoration at this scale, I would love to hear from you in the comments. Any pointers, recommendations, or lessons learned from the field are welcome. Leave a comment below.
