Wolves church set to become £1.1m antiques emporium
A derelict landmark church with links to the founders of Wolves is set for a £1.1 million transformation into an antiques emporium, the Express & Star can reveal today.
St Luke's Church in Blakenhall is in line to be sold for £1 after the Diocese of Lichfield agreed in principle to a deal with housing firm Czero Developments.
The firm plans to spend up to £1.1m on the interior of the church to fit it out as an antiques store. It has performed similar restorations on other churches around the country.
Grade II listed St Luke's closed its doors eight years ago and has been the subject of a campaign to stop it from being bulldozed.
At a meeting last week representatives from the Church of England backed the plans, which were put forward by Birmingham-based Czero's Simon Linford.
The sale has also been backed by campaigners and Wolverhampton South East parliamentary candidate Pat McFadden, who said it would 'breathe new life' into the famous old building.
He said: “St Luke’s Church is an iconic Wolverhampton building.
"Since it closed I have worked closely with the local group trying to find a new use for the church.
"The building needs a lot of work and significant investment to make it safe and bring it up to standard.
"The Church of England are confident that Mr Linford and his company have the track record and the resources to make the necessary investment.
"If they do what they are talking about, that will be a good thing for the building and the area but Mr Linford will have to give the community confidence he has the resources and the determination to bring new life to this great building.
"The last thing people would want is for the church to be sold to someone who doesn’t repair it and doesn’t invest in it.”
The church is next to St Luke's School, the birthplace of St Luke's FC which went on to become Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Aaron Gill, who has campaigned to save St Luke's for the past year, said: "This is great news and a relief to those of us who have been concerned about the future of the church.
"We look forward to seeing work start on the site in the near future and hope that it is restored in a suitable and tasteful manner."
Earlier this year the committee at the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara in Sedgley Street put forward a proposal to turn the church into a temple outreach centre.
But the scheme never got off the ground due to funding issues.
