Dear Editor,

We at St. Peter’s Corktown would like to share with our sister churches our concerns about the plans to move the Diocesan offices out of Detroit.  The advantages of such a move evade us, but the losses seem clear.

The primary stated gain is greater proximity to parishes (Lansing, Hillsdale) that are supposedly now underserved by the Diocese.  We support the idea of all parishes being well served, but what are these unmet needs? Why have we not heard of them before? How will moving the offices 12 miles west help?

As to the disadvantages:

•  We believe the Church’s mission includes solidarity with the poor and outcast. To move from the beleaguered (black) city of Detroit to an affluent (white) suburb sends quite the opposite message.

• Relocating to Plymouth subsidizes sprawl. This is not “a new thing”;  this follows 50 years of white flight and the devouring of green space.

• Money is an issue. Has the Executive Council calculated the economics of this move?  We pay our tithe to the Diocese; where will that money go if huge sums are borrowed to relocate offices to suburbia?

• Where does this leave the Cathedral Chapter? Will it leave the Cathedral Church of St. Paul to maintain the building alone?

Admittedly, we may not have all the facts regarding both the economics of the move and the issue of underserved parishes. But this highlights the need for more transparency in the decision-making process. A move of this importance should not have come as a surprise, but should be supported by a documented needs assessment, financial analysis and due deliberation of the symbolic and other implications of such a decision.