A picturesque church once featured in Architectural Digest has been taking its name rather broadly, traveling by water across Florida as it heads toward its new home.
Chapel on the Bay has garnered quite a few second looks as it took a leisurely "stroll" from West Florida to its final resting place in Palatka. If it gets tired of that location, it can still head to greener pastures elsewhere. Or should we say bluer waters?
Here's what we know.
What's the history of Chapel on the Bay and where was it originally?
Known as Chapel on the Bay, it was originally designed as a floating wedding chapel by naval architects Daniel J. Avoures and Associates,according to Architectural Digest.
It was docked in Palmetto, on Florida's West Coast.
Chapel on the Bay sold for $250,000
The floating chapel was transformed into a houseboat and was offered for sale earlier this year for $699,000, according to Architectural Digest.
It was listed by Special Finds, a real estate marketplace dedicated tounique properties, which said $1.3 million had been invested in its original build and modern conversion.
It recently sold for $250,000.
The Former Chapel on the Bay was listed for sale fully furnished, including a 65-inch flat-screen TV, leather furniture, outdoor seating, a gas grill, and a well-equipped kitchen, according to Special Finds.
Who bought Chapel on the Bay?
Mary Costello, a professional executive search recruiter living in New Smyrna Beach, is the boat’s new owner.
She plans to move it to Crystal Cove Marine & RV Resort in Palatka. She said she hopes it arrives at its new location by Labor Day.
'God is on the move': New name, new future for Chapel on the Bay
Costello has renamed Chapel on the Bay to The Archangel.
She said sheplans to turn it into a floating bookstore where she can offer story time for children. There also are plans to host wellness renewal retreats for “mind, body and spirit.”
There is interest in people wanting to stay in the home, especially by couples who were married in it when it was a chapel. Costello said she will likely offer it as a rental home at some point.
While Costello enjoys water, she told FLORIDA TODAY she is “not a boat person at all.” She found the unique dwelling while helping her pastor search online for a church.
“This whole process has been a bit overwhelming, but the Lord put it on my heart to buy this boat, so I did,” Costello said. “God is on the move.”
Follow the route taken by Chapel on the Bay from Palmetto to Palatka, Florida
The former floating chapel is moving to Palatka in Putnam County from Palmetto on Florida's West Coast.
Its journey from west to east went south to Fort Myers, across Lake Okeechobee, up the Intracoastal Waterway to Jacksonville and then south to Palatka. The trip was expected to take about 20 days and cost roughly $20,000.
What does the renovated church houseboat look like inside?
Inside, Chapel on the Bay has a "luxurious living space," with an open-plan living room, modern kitchen, and two bedrooms within 1,050 square feet of living space, according to Special Finds. Including decks, there is 1,800 square feet.
The primary suite has an ensuite bathroom on the main level. There's also a guest bathroom, and a loft bedroom upstairs.
It has air conditioning and a motion-dish satellite TV antenna, along with a generator that provides power for such appliances as the TV and refrigerator, according to Special Finds.
There are seven stained glass windows and a 30-foot steeple. And because this is Florida: the stained glass windows are protected by hurricane-proof glass, according to Special Finds.
It weighs 33 tons and measures 30 x 60 feet on twin catamaran hulls.
Chapel on the Bay by the numbers
Daniel J. Avoures and Associates Inc., naval architects and marine consultants, provided the following information about Chapel on the Bay:
- Overall length: 60 feet, 6 inches
- Bean: 30 feet, 5 inches
- Hull depth: 6 feet, 1 inch
- Draft: 2 feet, 9 inches
- Construction: Fiberglass
- Propulsion: Two Cummins 6B5.9115 HP diesel engines
- Auxiliary: 27Kw generator
- Displacement: 57 tons full load
- Passengers: 125 and 3 crew
Chapel on the Bay can move on its own
The home can move on its own with two Cummins Diesel engines.
Florida's Chapel on the Bay is 1 of 2 floating chapels in the world
According to the listing by Special Finds, Chapel on the Bay was one of only two floating chapels in the world. The other, known as the Floating Chapel, is inAustralia, and was the inspiration for the first owner of Chapel on the Bay, according to the navalarchitects.
"The Floating Chapel was the first of its kind in the world, cost half a million to dollars to build and is based on a 17th century structure," according to the National Film and Sound Archive of Australia.
"It was designed as a distinctive location for overseas holidaymakers to get married."
