Sean Lattimore is trying to teach an old church new tricks.

Three months ago, the Auburn businessman purchased a 150-year-old Mennonite church between Sand Beach and West Lake roads in the town of Fleming. Since the purchase, he has given the place a facelift - new furnace, new floors, new fans and a new overall look.

When he reopens the building next week, it will still serve as a place for people to congregate. But instead of religious worship, he hopes it will house conferences, weddings, proms and any other type of event for which people want to use it.

“It's still very church-like,” Lattimore said. “I'm trying to keep things similar.”

Lattimore is one of a handful of area business owners and investors who are currently restoring old churches. That group might have one more member soon. The 19th Century building on East Genesee Street that housed Trinity United Methodist Church until September is currently on the market as well.

Real estate experts say buying an old church can be a risky financial move, as the large buildings can be costly to renovate or even maintain. But for people with a vision, maintaining the area's history is worth taking the chance.

Lattimore's vision involved bringing two pieces of local history together. He owns the Springside Inn in Fleming, which was once the Springside School for Boys. The man who built the school was also the first pastor of the then-Dutch Reformed Church that built the church in 1851.

In an area so rich with history, it is fun to be able to make those connections, Lattimore said.

“In the 1800s, people were lugging these rocks over here to build this place,” Lattimore said while standing in the building's basement with walls constructed of stone. “The more research you do, the more you realize that a lot of action was going on in the area.”

Glenn Fletcher is also currently restoring a church. And like Lattimore, much of his motivation for buying the former First Church of Christ Disciples on North Division Street comes from a sense of history.

“My wife, Donna, and I both grew up in Auburn,” said Fletcher, who works as a car salesman and a real estate broker. “I thought it was a shame that it was just sitting there. For years, we drove by it and thought someone should do something about that building.”

Instead of letting the place get demolished, which he knew would eventually happen, Fletcher decided to convert the place into an events center for conventions, wedding and anything else that would require a large space.

Built more than 115 years ago, the gothic-style building had been vacant for almost a decade when he bought it. The church was first sold in 1976, and the previous owners had turned it into apartments.

The church has been anything but easy to renovate since he bought it six years ago, Fletcher said. After he bought it, he completely gutted the place until it was little more than four walls. He has since installed a new roof, replaced 50 windows and has restored much of the concrete and masonry work on the exterior.

Fletcher's project was included in the City of Auburn's recent application for the Restore New York grant. If accepted, he will receive $440,000 for the restoration, he said.

“We kind of rushed into it, and we could have done a little more homework,” he said. “But it is a nice piece of history, and we stopped another building from being destroyed because no one cared about it.”

John Bouck's Auburn real estate company, Bouck Real Estate, has shown several church properties over the years. Bouck said churches can be tough buildings to use for private business because they often are massive structures. They are inefficient in terms of energy use, and it can be very costly to convert into office or living spaces, he said.

“The cost of making the building usable and functional can far outweigh any economic benefits,” Bouck said.

Because of this, churches tend to attract local buyers like Lattimore and Fletcher, he said.

“A lot of the interest develops out of a sense of history and idealism instead of practicality,” Bouck said. “There are some beautiful places around this area that are very historic.”

Church buildings are usually tough to sell, according to Todd Post, who owns Post Realty. The secret is finding an individual who seeks a property with that kind of space.

“You have to have a very, very unique individual for these kinds of properties,” Post said.

Mary Ann Giacona would like to think she is one of those individuals. Giacona recently opened The Center, a holistic wellness center and spa, in the building that one housed St. John's Episcopal Church on the corner of Hoffman and East Genesee streets.

Like Fletcher and Lattimore, she has faced her share of challenges. Her second month into the building, she was surprised with a $6,000 energy bill.

“There is also a lot of upkeep and general maintenance, like keeping driveways clean and those types of things,” Giacona said.

The Center is currently open, though Giacona does not expect renovations to be complete until December. And her business only takes up a portion of the church. The main sanctuary has been converted into office spaces and is currently occupied by Seneca Cayuga ARC.

But she described the work as a “labor of love,” saying that the building fits her vision for The Center.

“Our tag line is that we are a sanctuary for healing and a spa for wellness,” Giacona said. “One of the first comments people make is about how peaceful the place feels and how comfortable it is.”

Staff writer Christopher Caskey can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 282 or christopher.caskey@lee.net.