Will Scott Save ‘Jesus Saves’ Church? Battle Resumes Today

It’s a strange day in Los Angeles when City Councilman Gilbert Lindsay, long a friend of the wrecking ball and skyscraper, acts like a born-again preservationist. Stranger still when the Los Angeles Conservancy, the ardent pro-heritage group, can’t decide whether a 72-year-old landmark church is worth saving, all things considered.

But then, television preacher Gene Scott is a man who works in mysterious ways. The strangeness of it all is expected to come to the fore today as the battle over the downtown Church of the Open Door, known as the “Jesus Saves” church, quiet for several weeks, resumes before the City Council.

Coded TV Message

The session could attract a large audience, especially if the flamboyant Scott has delivered a semi-secret coded message on television to his followers, exhorting them to an eschatalogical perusia--a prophetic appearance. If so, they will be the ones wearing the “Save the Church” tags.

After several months of acrimonious court fights, quiet lobbying and closed-door negotiations, the nutshell facts remain the same: Scott, who bought the building last year but lost it when he defaulted on his mortgage, wants to save the church known for its rooftop neon “Jesus Saves” signs. The Church of the Open Door, owner of the building, wants to sell the property to developers. A declaration of the church as a historic monument would block such a sale, say officials of the Church of the Open Door.

Lurking inside these facts “are political complexities so intricate that it really encumbers the landmark issue,” said Ruth Ann Lehrer, executive director of the Los Angeles Conservancy. “I’ve rarely seen a landmark issue so loaded with a variety of hidden agendas.”

If the City Council decides to declare the Hope Street church a monument, it would be a major victory for a campaign that the politically connected Scott began 1 1/2 years ago when he opened negotiations with the Church of the Open Door. It would also be a victory for what his opponents say are Scott’s dubious methods.

The Church of the Open Door, which occupied the church for more than 50 years before dwindling attendance prompted a move to new quarters in Glendora, said it simply wants the City Council to reaffirm a position it took in 1983, when the council agreed to a three-way deal in which the church would be sold to Lincoln Properties and razed to make way for a skyscraper.

Under the plan, $5 million would go to the city’s Community Redevelopment Agency for restoration and expansion of the neighboring Central Library. The Church of the Open Door says it needs money from the sale of the property to pay for its new facilities.

The trouble for the Church of the Open Door began when its deal with Lincoln Properties fell apart in late 1985. Scott, a minister whose religious conglomerate has survived investigations by the state attorney general’s office and the Federal Communications Commission, offered to buy the property for $23 million.

Payments Stopped

Vowing to save the landmark, Scott took possession of the building in June, 1986, and held Sunday services that attracted more than 3,000 people. But he stopped paying on his mortgage.

At the time, Scott claimed that his refusal to pay was prompted by a lawsuit filed by Lehua Garcia, a new member of the Church of the Open Door who claimed that the sale of the church violated an early trust on the property. It was soon discovered that Garcia, before she joined the church, had extensive ties to Scott’s ministry, raising questions about the motives of the suit.

The dispute spawned several legal skirmishes, with the courts repeatedly ruling in favor of the Church of the Open Door. Eventually, the church foreclosed on Scott.

While this was happening, Scott was also nurturing his relationship with the Los Angeles political establishment. Scott’s connections with Mayor Tom Bradley were already evident in political contributions and by the loan of a airplane owned by one of Scott’s subsidiaries to Bradley’s campaign for governor. Bradley addressed Scott’s followers one Sunday.

After the Central Library fire last March, Scott was appointed by Bradley to the blue-ribbon fund-raising committee. Scott impressed civic leaders by donating his Glendale studios and hosting a telethon that raised $3 million in pledges for the library restoration. More recently, he donated $150,000 to help reopen the Southwest Museum.

Lindsay Vows to Help

Scott also turned his attention to Lindsay, whose district encompasses downtown. The 86-year-old councilman, an ardent backer of high-rise development, was persuaded by Scott to help him preserve the church. Lindsay addressed Scott’s followers, vowing to help them save the church.

When Lindsay brought the motion to save the Italian Renaissance Revival church on March 11, it appeared that he had the votes to succeed. The decision was postponed, however, because the church was then the subject of federal bankruptcy proceedings.

Why Lindsay and Scott want to save the church is a matter of speculation. Scott and his lieutenants have said they simply want to preserve it for its cultural and historic value, noting its role in the city’s long tradition of evangelism. Joel Klevens, attorney for the Church of the Open Door, contends that Scott’s true plan is to drive down the value of the property to the point that Scott or his associates could receive it at a cut rate.

Both sides have lobbied with the Los Angeles Conservancy. Although the group voiced support for saving the building a few months ago, Lehrer said suspicion about Scott’s methods and motives has made the group leery of backing his position.

‘A Lot of Uncertainty’

“There’s some sensitivity among board members, some reserve and uncertainty about what his agenda is,” Lehrer said. “We try to act in a reasonable, above-board way and we’re dealing with a lot of uncertainty here.”

Lehrer said she plans to present information about the building’s historic value, “but not make a recommendation to the council.”

There remains the possibility that a deal with Lincoln Properties would provide money to restore the fountains and landscaping that once adorned the west side of Central Library. It is now a parking lot.

Such a plan could receive backing by the conservancy, which considers the Central Library a preeminent project.

Scott discussed the church issue from his Glendale pulpit during a recent Sunday service that was broadcast on television nationwide but blacked out in Los Angeles.

After explaining that the church issue would go before the City Council again soon, Scott told followers that, “in the interest of depriving the news media of their attempts to turn this into a personal thing, and for that reason only, I don’t intend to be there. But there’s nothing to prevent the rest of you citizens from being there.”

He urged them to “print up tags that say ‘Save the Church’ ” and told them--using his theological code word--that he might call upon them to pack the council gallery. “So when I say your eschatalogical perusia is necessary at such and such a date, you know when you’re supposed to drop everything, wear your little save-the-church badges and go down to the City Council. . . . You got it?” Scott said in the broadcast service.

The audience chorused, “Yes, sir!”