Preservations to rally for East Village church

Members of preservation and community groups will take to the streets today to show support for a 100-old East Village church at risk of being demolished.

The rally will be held today at 6 p.m. outside of Mary Help of Christians Church at 436 E. 12th St., a lot that developer Doug Steiner bought in November to turn into new apartments and ground-floor retail.

Andrew Berman, executive director of the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation, said the lot has enough open space to develop without destroying any buildings. Efforts to preserve the church and its school and rectory through the Landmark Preservation Commission failed.

"These buildings are what give our neighborhood a sense of character and identity," Berman said.

The rally is planned for 6 p.m. outside the church at 436 E. 12th St. A spokeswoman for Steiner declined to comment.