Century-old Tarpon Springs church gets new life as mansion
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The former First Baptist Church of Tarpon Springs is for sale for $6 million. Photo: Courtesy of Compass Florida
A nearly 100-year-old church in Tarpon Springs is now reborn as a Mediterranean-inspired mansion.
Driving the news: The home at 160 Read Street, just north of Spring Bayou and within walking distance of downtown, hit the market last week with a $6 million price tag, listed by Compass Florida.
- The three-story, Mission-style building is split into two units, one with three bedrooms and 3.5 bathrooms and another with two bedrooms and 2.5 bathrooms.
- The units are joined by doors on each floor to accommodate separate or communal living.
Plus: A 4,000-square-foot garage on the ground floor has room for 12 vehicles as well as an elevator to the fourth floor. The back of the home features a heated lap pool with an outdoor kitchen, and a converted bell tower offers views of the bayou.
Flashback: The building was constructed in 1926 to house the First Baptist Church of Tarpon Springs, according to documents from the Florida Baptist Historical Society shared with Axios.
- The congregation formed more than three decades earlier, first as the West Anclote Baptist Church before it reorganized under the First Baptist name.
- A new owner who took over the church in the 1970s rented it out to several congregations over the years. It was abandoned in 1993 after a storm flooded the ground floor.
- The owner considered turning the building into condos, but those plans never materialized.
The latest: In January 2022, developer and Tarpon Springs resident Tony Marterie bought the property for $1.25 million from the previous owner who had converted it into his personal residence.
- Marterie spent the last year and a half meticulously renovating the old church into a home "with the perfect blend of historic charm and modern luxury," the listing says.
What they're saying: The home "has a resort feel. It feels like you're in, maybe, Italy," listing agent Jon Fincher told Axios. "It really is a masterpiece."
- Compass hasn't gotten any bites yet, Fincher said, acknowledging it's a high price point for Tarpon Springs.
- "It's going to take a unique buyer."