7 days ago
Wayfarers Chapel to rebuild at new location in Rancho Palos Verdes
The Brief
Wayfarers Chapel plans to be built at a new location just one mile west.
The new location will sit on the Battery Barnes military site.
The chapel closed in February 2024 due to accelerated land movement.
LOS ANGELES - LA's iconic Wayfarers Chapel, located in Rancho Palos Verdes, might be rebuilt at a completely new location.
The backstory
The chapel closed in February 2024 due to 'accelerated land movement.' Large cracks were present on the foundation throughout the chapel, making it unstable. The74-year-old chapel wascompletely disassembled by July 2024.
What we know
As they look forward to rebuilding, organizers said the existing location is no longer ideal. According to Wayfarers Chapel's website, they plan to rebuild the new chapel only one mile west of the current location. The new location will sit on the Battery Barnes military site.
On their website, they released four artistic renderings that show the chapel on the new Battery Barnes site, on the Alta Vicente hilltop above Point Vicente Lighthouse and the Golden Cove shopping center.
What they're saying
"With the original Chapel carefully disassembled and stored, we are now ready to rebuild the Chapel as soon as we can secure the prospective new site and raise rebuilding funds. Following the closure of the chapel in February 2024 and with disassembly completed in July 2024, we have determined that rebuilding on the previous (heritage) site is not possible for the future of Wayfarers Chapel. The new proposed location sits adjacent to Rancho Palos Verdes City Hall on the Battery Barnes military site," their website read.
It's unclear when construction will start or when the new chapel will reopen.
The Instagramable glass chapel is a popular wedding venue in LA. The 100-seat, glass chapel opened in 1951 and was designated a National Historic Landmark in 2023. The famed Mid-century Modern structure with glass walls was designed by Lloyd Wright, the son of Frank Lloyd Wright.
The Source
Information for this story came from the Wayfarers Chapel website.
