Lloyd Wright’s Wayfarers Chapel closed its doors to the public abruptly last week due to the threat of landslides that have afflicted the Los Angeles area and its site in Rancho Palos Verdes.

In a statement posted to the Chapel’s website, the ministry responsible for its stewardship cited “accelerated land movement” in the area as the reason for its immediate temporary closure.

Rancho Palos Verdes, which is a 12.3-square-mile incorporated city in coastal Los Angeles County, has been particularly impacted by winter storms since early February and is seeking to have a state of emergency declared for recent damage that’s compounded already dangerous landslide conditions.

A local official told the LA Times, “In some areas, [the land] is moving up to 10 feet a year. That’s significant movement, and we’re seeing the damage that’s being sustained throughout the community. We have approximately 400 homes that are threatened by this landslide.”

Completed by the eldest son of Frank Lloyd Wright in 1951, the Chapel (aka “The Glass Church”) was designated finally as a National Historic Landmark this past December. Its closure means the cancellation of as many as 100 weddings that were planned for the photogenic church, which had lost its original visitors center to a landslide in the 1960s. 

Lloyd Wright's Bowler House and Lombardi House are also located in Rancho Palos Verdes and have not reported any damage. A GoFundMe campaign for the chapel's damage recovery is also being solicited online.