Beloved Palos Verdes Peninsula landmark Wayfarers Chapel has undergone its first phase of disassembly, according to a press release from the Wayfarers leadership on July 17.

The disassembly team successfully salvaged the redwood, steel, glass and roof tiles from the chapel to store in a safe location. However, the Palos Verdes (PV) stone walls, the stone fountain and the bell tower have still not been removed.

The bell tower, which is about 80 feet tall, cannot be salvaged in the same way as the other materials due to safety concerns for crew members. However, the team will remove and store certain elements from the bell tower such as the cross, roof tiles, bells and interior spiral stairs. Then, the tower will be dismantled.

“All possible options for salvaging the bell tower have been explored by the design team,” said Katie Horak, principal at Architectural Resources Group, in the press release. “Safety continues to be our No. 1 priority, and given the circumstances of the land movement we continue to see on site, it is imperative that the bell tower is removed as soon as possible.”

Although conditions are worsening, the disassembly team will continue to document and save the elements that they can salvage for reuse, such as the PV stone in the foundation, lower walls and fountain. However, the team will only be able to move forward with the disassembly project until conditions become too unsafe for workers to be on site.

“It has been approximately one year since accelerated movement on chapel grounds caused greater visible damage to structures and hardscapes than ever before,” said Dan Burchett, the executive director at Wayfarers Chapel, in the press release. “Who could have imagined that within one year’s time, the chapel would be deconstructed and all structures on the property would only be a memory? As difficult as this year has been, we have felt the support of our community and city and are strengthened in our resolve to rebuild.”

The chapel site remains closed to the public indefinitely due to accelerating land movement in the Portuguese Bend area, and all other non-historic structures on the site have been removed.

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