The Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh announced today that proceeds from the sale, which were not disclosed, would go to St. Nicholas Parish in Millvale, the owner of the building.

The East Ohio Street property contains an empty rectory, a former church building, a double garage and a grotto. The former church building has been closed since December 2004 for safety reasons and the rest of the buildings have not been maintained for a decade, according to the diocese.

Lamar Advertising intends to use the land at the site to erect billboards, the diocese said.

The former church building is designated as a local historic landmark. For that reason, the parish has been unable to remove the stained-glass windows in the church building as statutes prevent alterations to exteriors of designated buildings.

Sacred objects were removed from the interior.

The administrator of the parish said Lamar has not told him what it plans to do with the buildings.

Meanwhile, a design study and a market analysis commissioned by Preserve Croatian Heritage indicate that conversion of the church to an immigration museum and trail is feasible, said Mark Fatla, executive director of the Northside Leadership Conference. The conference has managed the project for the Croatian group. The church began as an ethnic Croatian parish.

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