St. Leo the Great Church, 6658 Keystone St. in Tacony, will no longer serve as a worship site of Our Lady of Consolation Parish, and will no longer be designated as a Roman Catholic church.
The Archdiocese made the announcement on Sunday, and the decision is effective on Jan. 7.
In July 2013, St. Leo merged with Our Lady of Consolation. Both parishes were experiencing declining Mass attendance.
At that time, St. Leo was available for the occasional celebration of Mass as well as funerals, weddings and baptisms, as is customary whenever possible in the case of a parish merger.
According to the archdiocese, the costs associated with ongoing and deferred maintenance for St. Leo Parish have placed a significant financial strain upon Our Lady of Consolation, which had a debt of $284,085 as of June 30.
St. Leo Elementary School closed in 2005. ••
