A man got a priest's blessing to convert a 137-year-old church into an Airbnb that rents for at least $200 a night. See the transformation.

By Dan Latu

A former church nave decorated as a living space with a pool table and various seating areas. — Over two years, Kyle Rooney converted an 1886-built Minneapolis church into an Airbnb that rents for $200 and up a night. Kyle Rooney

2023-04-15T17:57:44.000Z

In 2020, Kyle Rooney paid $275,000 for a Liberal Catholic Church in Minneapolis.
He turned it into an Airbnb over two years with a $250,000 budget and help from design pros.
One family has already used the space, which rents for $200 and up a night, to host Thanksgiving.

During the summer of 2020, Kyle Rooney, a 46-year-old Minneapolis resident who works for a medical device company and invests in real estate on the side, heard a local church was for sale.

The outside of a white church with red trim and a large cross.

When he saw its price drop, he asked for a tour. "I had absolutely no idea what to do with a church," Rooney said, "but I really wanted to see it."

Kyle Rooney wears jeans, a plaid shirt, and a dark jacket. He sits on a park bench with his wife and four children. A tree with fall leaves is behind them. — Kyle Rooney, who converted a historic Minneapolis church into an Airbnb, and his family. Kyle Rooney

The 137-year-old church in South Minneapolis, a few blocks outside the trendy Uptown neighborhood, had been used by Episcopalian and Lutheran congregations.

A church nave and apse with wood walls and ceiling. — The church even served as a furniture store and pipe-organ factory in its history . Kyle Rooney

In 1927, it became the spiritual home of St. Francis Parish, a Liberal Catholic congregation. But as years passed, the popularity of the Liberal Catholic parish dwindled.

A church nave with wood-clad walls and ceiling and pews pushed to the sides of the walls.

The last service performed in the space was during Easter of 2020. When he toured it that fall, Rooney was in awe of the space.

Kyle Rooney stands wearing a button-down shirt and suit jacket in the nave of the church he bought, standing beside one of the congregation's previous priests. — Rooney with one of the church's previous priests. Kyle Rooney

Rooney, who grew up Roman Catholic, then met with Father Richard Curney, who oversaw the parish's closing. Curney assured him the space was deconsecrated and ready for its next chapter.

A church nave with wood-clad walls and wood pews.

Rooney bought the church for $275,000 in December 2020. Other interested groups had proposed converting the space into apartments or tearing it down entirely, but Rooney was committed to preserving its history.

The nave of a church with unfinished wood floors.

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Rooney initially budgeted $100,000 for the project. After the hand-drawn plans he had submitted to the city were roundly rejected, he enlisted professionals to help.

A kitchen with bright green walls, white floors, and fluorescent lighting.

He hired local architectural firm Clever Architecture and interior designer Kara Wheeler. Converting the church with their help ended up costing a total of $250,000.

A former kitchen with neon green walls amid a renovation.

The large basement was divided to make three bedrooms. The finished rental has 2.5 bathrooms and sleeps 8.

A church room under renovation.

Renovating such an old building presented challenges. The basement floors had to be raised so the bedrooms could have a means of egress, or an unobstructed path to leave, through their windows.

A church room under renovation.

Six months into what ended up being a two-year project, Rooney said he had second thoughts. "If I would have known how much work and time it would have taken, I'm not sure I would have done it," he said.

A dingy room with wood floors and various tables.

Rooney, a real-estate investor who owns two other short-term rentals as well as some long-term rentals, said the project was a real "leap of faith."

"This gets my attention in the evening and on the weekends. But I've been doing it long enough that I have the best portfolio of 'help' to make things happen," he wrote in an email. "I struggle to screw in a lightbulb, and I've always told myself I won't ever do real estate if it affects how I do my day job. That's number one, and this is a hobby. But one I really enjoy and I'm pretty good at."

Rooney wanted to make as few adjustments to the raw space as possible. All of the wood in the chapel — which is now a living, dining, and game room — is original.

A church nave with wood walls and moving blankets on the floors.

A massive fire in the 1980s caused the roof to collapse into the chapel. Part of the altar survived and remains in the Airbnb. Rooney posted a newspaper article about the fire in the space so visitors could learn its history.

A wood-clad church nave.

The hardest part was getting every step approved by the city because the property was being rezoned from commercial to residential use, Rooney said.

The nave of a church with wood ceilings amid a renovation into residential use.

In 2022, he was thrilled when the certificate of occupancy was approved and he could post the property on Airbnb and other short-term-rental booking sites.

New drywall around a peaked window.

The 4,000-square-foot space, dubbed the Lyndale Church Lodge, finally opened to visitors in November of 2022. It now rents for about $200 and up per night.

A former church nave decorated as a living space with a pool table and various seating areas.

Rooney pays a local company called Minnestay about 30% to manage the property.

Source: Airbnb; Vrbo; Minnestay

The first guests were a family visiting relatives in Minneapolis for Thanksgiving. They were so taken with the space that they ended up hosting Thanksgiving dinner at the church.

A brightly sunlit living room with two chairs and a coach.

Business groups can conduct meetings and use the original pulpit, Rooney said. The rental has Wi-Fi and a sound system.

The former apse of a church has been turned into a living room with white walls.

Thirteen people can fit at a massive table Rooney found via a local architecture firm that was going out of business. "You can reenact The Last Supper if you want," he joked.

A room with wood walls and a large round table surrounded by many chairs.

The Minneapolis Convention Center — plus the stadiums where the NFL's Vikings and the MLB's Twins play — are all within a three-mile radius.

A living room with a fireplace surrounded by large chairs.

Rooney preserved pews, artifacts, and even priests' private mementos. He placed them in the space — repurposing some as furniture and decor — to pay homage to its history.

A room with wood walls and a chess table surrounded by intricate wood chairs.

In 1886, when the church was first built, it was surrounded by fields. Minneapolis grew up around it, but Rooney said the space still has a "prairie" feel.

A corner of a room with high ceilings, built-in bookshelves, and seating.

What was previously a tiny kitchen has been converted into what Rooney called a "gourmet" one.

A kitchen with patterned flors, light blue cabinets, white cabinets, and a wood table in the middle.

The building remains a sacred place despite its new purpose, Rooney said. "It still elicits a certain kind of feeling when you walk in," he added. "It's peaceful and quiet."

The outside of a church surrounded by trees and shrubbery.

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