The Mars council discussed several options during their council meeting on Monday, July 10, on what to do with the Dutilh United Methodist Church, pictured above on Wednesday, July 12. The borough purchased the church, along with three other properties, in 2019. Zach Petroff/Butler Eagle

MARS — Magic was not part of the council agenda at a meeting earlier this week.

“I’m done pulling rabbits out of our hat to fund this stuff,” said council president Mike Fleming Monday, July 10 in regards to the future of the vacant Dutilh United Methodist Church at 532 Pittsburgh St.

The vacant church was the topic of several discussions during Monday’s, July 11, council meeting. From a proposal to turn the building into a community center to selling the building, nothing was off-limits — or decided — when it came to the future of the old church.

Resident Logan Hammerschmitt, introduced as a “community liaison” during the meeting, proposed turning the old church into a community center.

“Over the course of the past couple of weeks, I’ve had the opportunity to speak with a handful of business downtown,” Hammerschmitt said to the committee. “Overwhelmingly, the consensus has been that the church should be put in good use in some way that the community can benefit from.”

The borough purchased the Dutilh United Methodist Church properties, which included the education center along with two parking lots, in November 2019 for $325,000. The church been used by a few community programs, such as the Mars Robotics Association, but has been vacant since 2022.

Several members on the council expressed concern about the cost of keeping the building up to code and fixing the roof, which would be $37,823.

“It’s a money pit,” Fleming said. “We’re just going to throw money at it. You’re going to fix the bricks and then ‘this and that’ is going to need fixed. I’m telling you. It’s a bad idea, plain and simple.”

Selling the building comes with its own set of issues according to the council.

“This building alone is worth five times what we paid for the whole thing,“ Fleming said. ”If we never use that church, it doesn’t hurt us.“

The parking lot of the vacant church was part of the consideration when making the purchase in 2019, and selling the land could complicate the parking situation.

“We bought that because we wanted control of both parking lots, which is what we achieved,” Fleming said. “If we sell it, that puts a compromise on the purpose of getting control of the parking lot.“

When asked by Hammerschmitt if the committee was prepared to let the building “fall into disrepair,” Rob Bost, council vice president, was quick to respond.

“It’s been doing that for the five years we’ve owned it,” Bost said. “And the 100 years it has been standing.“

The council is not on any timetable to come up with a solution.

“It’s irresponsible on our part to not know what our long-term plan is before we put any more money into that building,” Fleming said.

The Dutlih United Methodist Church, pictured Wednesday, July 12, has been vacant since 2022. The church needs several costly repairs, including repairing the roof, that could cost nearly $38,000. Zach Petroff/Butler Eagle