Temple University is seeking to demolish an 1886-vintage historic church building on campus, called Thomas Hall, to make way for a new five-story dormitory at Broad and Norris Streets.

The university's plan cleared a key hurdle yesterday, when a committee of the Philadelphia Historical Commission voted to allow the demolition on the grounds that maintaining the hall would be a financial hardship for Temple.

A small but vocal group of Temple alumni, however, spoke out against tearing down the old stone building, saying that the structure could be used to house a communications museum and that their preliminary efforts to approach the school about raising foundation money for the project had been ignored.

The full historical commission is scheduled to vote on Temple's bid Friday. The commission must approve any changes to Thomas Hall because it's certified as a historic landmark and the campus lies within a historic district.

The new dorm, which would house 500 students, is a keystone to Temple president Peter Liacouras' plan to revitalize the Broad Street campus. He has argued that more students living on campus would generate a need for more retail stores in the vicinity, and would create a more lively campus atmosphere. For similar reasons, Liacouras wants to move the Tyler School of Art to the main campus from its current location in Elkins Park. Temple treasurer and chief financial officer Martin S. Dorph said Temple would like to start demolition of Thomas Hall next month and have the new dorm ready for use by the 1999-2000 school year. The $22.5 million project would be paid for with a $195 million bond sale Temple hopes to complete by week's end. The bulk of the bond proceeds would help refinance old debt to take advantage of current lower interest rates.

Dorph explained to the historical commission's financial hardship committee that demolition of Thomas Hall would cost only about $375,000, while saving Thomas Hall and stabilizing its shell would cost $1.5 million and require the construction of a taller, eight-story dorm. Kristl Wiernicki, Temple's dean of students, said that in order for Temple to compete successfully with other schools for resident students, it must provide what those students want -- lower-slung buildings set up in a suite arrangement, rather than more traditional dorms with common-use bathrooms.

She said Temple's existing high-rise dorms have been the last choice of students seeking to live on campus. "We find that over the past few years, four to one they're choosing the apartment or suite-style arrangement over the traditional dorm room," Wiernicki said. "That's certainly dramatic evidence of what we're up against.

"Students are in and out of the building many times throughout the day, often taking bikes or recreation equipment, and it's a hassle for them," Wiernicki said. "Even with an elevator, it's a pain in the neck." Dorph also said that Temple looked at incorporating Thomas Hall as part of a new dorm building, but that would add several million dollars more to the project. He said Temple, which has had to freeze hiring and reduce payroll through attrition in recent years, just doesn't have the luxury to find an extra $1 million or $2 million to keep Thomas Hall standing.

Historical commission member Scott Wilds expressed skepticism at the cost Temple quoted for the dorm project, saying it sounded extravagantly high. If the per-square-foot numbers were one third lower, he said, the option of including Thomas Hall as part of a new dorm would be affordable to Temple.

David Brownlee, another commission member, questioned the necessity of having a five-story as opposed to an eight-story dorm to achieve Temple's desire for suite arrangements for the dorm rooms. In the end, only Brownlee voted against the Temple proposal.

Three Temple alumni opposed to the demolition spoke briefly before the committee, arguing that they could work with trusts and other organizations to find the money to restore Thomas Hall and use it as a broadcast and communications museum. The building once housed Temple's radio station, WRTI.

One of the opponents, Fran Odyniec, noted that the Philadelphia Preservation Alliance called Thomas Hall "a particularly exuberant example of High Victorian Gothic style" and "truly a gift to the street." It was only six months ago that Temple raised a similar ruckus when it proposed tearing down the bulk of another historical structure, the Baptist Temple building on Broad Street, where Temple University founder Russell Conwell led a congregation.

After a flurry of criticism, Temple withdrew its demolition proposal for the Baptist Temple.

The committee yesterday also voted approval of a plan by Temple to tear down six historic rowhouses along the 1800 block of Park Mall. Temple plans to turn the space into a quadrangle and lease the remaining rowhouses to a developer for commercial use.