In 2005, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York decided to close St. Mary's Church as a cost saving measure. The people of the parish, and of the Newburgh community as a whole, rose up in protest and the Archdiocese withdrew the proposal. Then, in the summer of 2015, the archdiocese proposed closing the parish yet again, and while the community protests eclipsed those of 2005, this time the proposal was carried through. St. Mary's Parish was merged with St. Patrick's effective August 1, 2015. The church building was shuttered and closed and has not been used since that date. Father William Scafidi, the pastor and arguably the most popular community leader in Newburgh at that time, was transferred by the Archdiocese to a parish church in Liberty, New York.