1629-7 Community Church • ..; (C( re-C °VII)/
245 Espanola Way,
• Miami Beach, Fla.
November 30, 1927.
Mr. Carl G. Fisher, •
Miami Beach, Fla.
My dear Mr. Fisher:
Permit me to place before you the following
j in answer to your telephone message of Wednesday morning con-
cerning the Catholic Church property.
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�i I. The status of the question is this. The block contains
�� twelve lots. Six are a donation from you. For the other
$25,000 was paid, or $4,233 for each. Located on the property
are seven buildings , four of which are used for a chapel and
for a school. The remaining three are smaller and are used
for convent and lunch rooms, etc.
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2. Our retention of' the property. depends absolutely on our
capacity to pay as well as on our capacity to meet the cost
of building. There would be no question of our ability to do
• either if conditions prior to the original negotiations had
maintained. It is a matter of Beach History that they did not .
The slump, the hurricane, the decrease of population and a
multitude of combined conditions and forces, have changed the
outlook entirely. To contend with that changed outlook I was
drafted for work here, one year ago last May. 'I did my best,
but I was not a prophet. However, if I know anything, I know
from many months of sad experience, my financial capacity,
and because I know, I am forced to .state that it will be abso-
lutely impossible to accept your offer and to assume the prob-
lem of building the proposed church. I go further and say that
I defy anyone to do so with the resources at my disposal. As
evidence, I wish to say that during the last seven months,
from the first of May to the first of December, the total church
receipts from all sources amOunted to approximately $3600.
Please remember that I am not saying one word in criticism of
your offer. I am convinced of your generosity. I have been the
recipient of your consistent kindness. I value your friendship
more than you know, and more than I can express.
3. In appraising the buildings located on the property, and
now in use for school purposes your board has the facts. As for
me I did not originally negotiate. Had I been present I should
have considered the buildings an encumbrance rather than an asset.
I have devoted tiventy years of my life to the managex:ent of
churches and schools, and in that time I have learned a few things.
In view of that ::xperience I could not have accepted the buildings.
Their reconditionin: proved costly, they were all unroofed by the
hurricane, the furniture was mostly destroyed,, and they cost
doubly to put them back in shape. The spokesren-who negotiated
are excused because they were under the spell of millions, the
result of the boom. This is my modest estimate as comapred with
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� that of your board. The four larger buildings would be fairly
/ estimated at $2,000 each. the three smaller at $1,500. Say a
total of $10,000 for the seven. This amount I would be willing
to pay in settlement of the whole negotiation.
4. The story would not be complete without calling attention to
1 some further matters. It is of great importance to begin the
erection of the church at once. It will be an evidence of the
. stability of the Beach, and it will act as a decided propaganda '
in favor of bettered conditions. The new church will attract
many Catholics to the Beach and you know that there are among the
Catholic colony many wealthy and influential people. I just had
a letter from Charles Fisher of Detroit stating that his children
' would arrive the first of January for school.
In the erection of its buildings the Church will expend
in the neighborhood of $300,000. And this is sneaking of building
during the present favorable conditions for building. This is no
small matter for the Beach. It means that the money will come
practically all from outside the Beach, and be spent here. The
Beach will be the beneficiary. The money will be secured by my per-
sonal ap'oeal. If anyone wants the privilege of making such appeals
I will gladly relinquish the humiliation. Those whom I at-)roach =
' spend but a short time here, and they truthfully and justly say
that they have their own churches and institutions ih other places
to support. Not many listen to the appeal. I can candidly say
that if human interests were the motive I could not be paid to en-
dure the ordeal.
There is something of much greater esteem than the
material buildings of brick and stone. We have at the Beach, •
twelve Nuns, devoted and consecrated women, who work and pray.
They work for all of us. They pray for me and you particularly.
No matter what our beliefs or our lack of belief it is wonderful
to know that people so much better than we are, are making inter-
cession for us. Six of the Nuns conduct the school, six of them
nurse,. and manage in the Allison Hospital. Five o 'clock in the
morning never sees them in bed. .They work for no earthly reward.
They have talents and education but devoted to our welfare. They
ask but simple fare and a few clothes. and even for these they
beg blessings for us from on High. We are here, two priests. I
do not wish to make out a case for myself, but I think you know
we are devoted to the Beach for no selfish motive. .We care as
little for material reward as do the Nuns. The loss of this
active :ersonel to the Beach would be a grave disaster. I do not
want to ev n harbor the thought.
Don't wonder that I write to you so. To whom else
might I write? I have not been here these many months without
knowing who you are, and whatyou mean to Miami Beach. You are
Miami Beach. Yours is its conception. and without you, its last
chapter is written.
5. In conclusion, I offer the followin; as my opinion of the
wisest course to follow.
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A. The Fisher Interests would put me eternally in
their debt and would do well to issue to me deeds for the property '
without further payment or obligation on the part of the Church.
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•• This is the best course. I urge you to follow it. I am sure that
it is in harmony with your private mind as expressed to me.
B. In case this would be impossible as opposed to the
views of your board, I would be willing to pay in cash $10,000 in
compensation for the buildings situated on the property.
C. If neither of the above should prove satisfactory to
you I shall be forced to relinquish reluctantly the property. In
which case I shall ask you to allow us to occupy the buildings until
the end of the school year. I shall also ask for the return of the
$25,000 paid on the property.
As a last word I wish to assure you that I shall be more •
than glad to again go over the matter with you at the office. Please -
notify me when. I could have seen you instead of writing you, but I
did want to state my case so that you would be familiar with the .
matter as I see it. •
• With sentiments of the highest regard and affection,
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I remain sincerely yours,
C94413:0
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Docembor 2* 1927. •
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Pathar. W. Barry, . . . .
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N., , 245 Espanola way* . . . . . . . •
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Lagmi Beach.
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, Dear Father Barry:
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I have yours of the thirtieth. Wo have gone * •' (.':,'. • -• .
.oOr our figures here, and the situation is just this:
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In assisting you in the clean-out of the.general
neighborhood whore you wore sold proporty, we tore down some
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. , OW,000 worth of barns and other construction work. Then we \ . .
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moved come ()25,000 or 030,000 worth of other barns and other
cOputruction work so tlat you might have an unusual location
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4'op your church. Our actual expenses in the buildings which . .
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*moved* amounted to come 4,C00. The barns which we gave
you coot us 04,500 apioco without tho foundations, water con-
, noOtions, electric 11.2hts, etc. The email houses, I think, . • . .
cost us .:,42,700 apiece without lights, foundations or water
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con4octions. Up to tie present time, we cannot get ull our
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- i 4avroo together on a groat d.al or this work as it was partly
. ., dont!) with our regular improvement force and was charged daily
to ilections of the property. Howevor* it is quite safe to . . .
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pay\that we havo invested in your school property almost twice
, \as Auch money as we have received up to the present time.
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If the latest proposition made to you is not . ,
matiskactory, we aro willing to cancel the sane and call .
thetdeal off. we could not, however, return you any part
Of 4.-iho advanced myment rade for the reason as statod4 we
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ping the property in your neighborhood'. attractive, and in . .
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tyhe buildings which•wo donated to you.
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' 'e want to cooperate with you in any way tiro can,
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b4a t there is limit to what we can do as we have our own Co..
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, ,lkgationo to meet. we can mako minor improvements on the
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1 , . ' pNoperty you now occupy and sell it later at a considerable . •
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rathor 3. parry,
Docabor 2, 1927, . . .
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, . adVance over the amount you have paid for those individual
.. lots.
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We aro perfectly willing for you to occupy the
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property up to 2eptember firet without any charge whatever, ,‘
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a44 cancel the entire transaction.
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Vie will alsn make what arrangements wo can for ,
. . yea to hold your classes on 6unday in the anditortum„ if it . .
does not interfere vith z:ome special concerts that have been
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i pxranged for the coming so&.eon. we will have to look into
this before vie can advise you defin4te3y.
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In the meantime, we would like to have you in-
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'StrOct the children at the school to lot the plaster Polo
Pony alone. '',"e paid a thousand dollars for thiu piece of
. 1 worl:', and it is ono of the finest we have over had on the
1 Beach. It will be neceouary for us to move this at once
and to have considerable work done to put it in shape.
Thotz1.1 has been destroyed and the ears have boon broken
'“off and a lot of other damage has been done. We hope you
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Iiiillwatch it as keenly as possible until we can move it toro
110cation where the children are not z)o easily led into tempt . .
tion to destroy. I cannot blaTe the kids much, as I used to,
/ throw rocks myself at anything brectable. . . .
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I wish you would advioo me as soon as possible, •
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/ sci:Vo'can make our arran;erients.
. . • Very truly yours,
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L.Ile boom. • - . .
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