As we get ready for some major renovation projects I wanted to review the overall plan for the campus and why we are moving in this direction. I’m hoping that by keeping you informed you can become collaborators in the process and help make this a reality.

When I arrived,my predecessors, through your generosity, had been able to put away$1.3 million for future building renovations, particularly the parish hall. When I arrived the direction that had been presented was a renovation of the current hall with an estimated cost of $4million. Initially, I was in favor of the plan. I thought that the old hall had character, I was afraid that a new hall might not have the same flavor. At that point I wasn’t too concerned because we didn’t have the money anyways.

As time progressed we explored the possibility of simplifying the renovation project and doing it in phases. The thought was that we could first renovate the basement and stop the flooding, then work on the top floor. The plan would cost us $1.5 million just to repair the basement and stop the flooding and another $2 million to renovate the upper hall.