Woodbury Mansion to Be Home for Bishop

By Phil Dunn
The Courier-Post
January 6, 2014

http://www.courierpostonline.com/article/20140102/NEWS01/301020019/Woodbury-mansion-home-bishop?gcheck=1

The Camden Diocese has bought this Woodbury house from Rowan University for $500,000.

A historic Woodbury mansion once home to the past president of Rowan University has been sold to the Camden Diocese for $500,000.

Diocesan spokesman Peter Feuerherd said the 7,000-square-foot mansion will now be home to Bishop Dennis Sullivan, who took over leadership of the diocese after Bishop Joseph Galante retired in 2012.

The purchase was finalized Dec. 23.

Feuerherd said Sullivan currently lives in an apartment situated off the St. Pius X Retreat House in Blackwood. He has sought a new home to hold meetings with church donors and dignitaries.

The diocese also is nearing final sale of the Blackwood home where both Galante and Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio resided during their time with the diocese. The sale price is $400,000, Feuerherd said.

“Bishop Sullivan felt the apartment was not a large enough to meet the needs of potential donors, benefactors or for workspace,” he added. “It’s analogous to the reasons Rowan bought the property.”

Rowan purchased the Cooper Street mansion in 2000 for then-President Dr. Donald Farish. The college has been trying to unload the property since Farish’s exit in 2011.

At the time of the original purchase, Rowan spokesman Joseph Cardona said the Woodbury house “simply met the university’s needs.”

"We have the need for a place where the Farish family can not only have a life of their own, but also a place where we can entertain, a place where we can have large functions,” Cardona explained then.

The Woodbury house was built by Frank H. Stewart in 1908. The South Jersey businessman had an avid interest in history. The gray stone house — with eight bedrooms and six bathrooms — is described as one of the city’s “grandest” homes. Annual taxes are $31,000.

Other amenities include an in-ground pool, three fireplaces, a library and a five-plus–car garage.

The mansion has undergone extensive interior renovations, including a $700,000 overhaul that was completed by Rowan in 2002.

The dining room set is reportedly worth $24,621. The mailbox cost $450. Other furnishing costs: $1,170 for a pair of brass sconces, $24,000 for a used Steinway piano, $8,593 for drapes and accessories, and a $1,938 wicker love seat for the sun porch.

Contact: pdunn@gannett.com.