Council committee approves landmark designation for New Sardis Primitive Baptist Church

The Cleveland council committee approved emergency Order 1314 to designate New Sardis Primitive Baptist Church, formerly the Kinsman Jewish Center, as a Cleveland landmark.

Carl Brunges, Cleveland Landmark staff, told the committee the property sits on the north side of Kinsman Road between East 146th and East 147th streets in the Kinsman–Mount Pleasant neighborhood in Ward 1 and traced its development from early 20th‑century subdivisions through neighborhood annexations.

The landmark nomination highlighted the building's role in Jewish communal life in the 1930s and later as a longstanding African American congregation. Brunges said the Kinsman Jewish Center congregation was incorporated in 1930 and the building was dedicated in 1932; membership grew substantially through the 1930s and 1940s. He noted later alterations — including a covered original cornerstone and an attempt to remove the Kinsman Jewish Center inscription — but said the building “generally maintains its integrity.”

Brunges provided historical context for the neighborhood's ethnic changes, referencing the broader Great Migration and local housing practices that shaped settlement patterns. After the presentation the committee recorded no questions and advanced the order. Council member Jones indicated support; the order was approved as presented.

The designation marks the building for historic review and gives staff and the city an additional tool to consider preservation measures as property changes are proposed.

Order 1314 was introduced by Council member Jones and stands approved by the committee.