Date: Fri 10-Jul-1998

Publication: Bee

Author: KAAREN

Quick Words:

St-Rose-Church-expansion

Full Text:

A Growing St Rose Church Plans To Expand Its Facilities

BY KAAREN VALENTA

St Rose of Lima Church last week purchased for $440,000 the property at 38

Church Hill Road as the first step in an anticipated long-range

expansion/renovation program.

"After consultation with our Parish Advisory Council and with the approval of

Bishop Edward M. Egan, it was decided to purchase the McCulloch property at

the west entrance of our grounds," Monsignor George D. Birge, St Rose pastor,

said. "Since our parish is indeed growing it was deemed wise to purchase it,

especially for future generations of St Rose parishioners."

Membership at St Rose parish has grown to nearly 2,500 families. The religious

education program for kindergarten through eighth grades includes 1,200 public

school students, and there are 250 parochial students enrolled at St Rose

School.

"The parish has to look to the future -- not only at today's needs but

tomorrow's," said Bernard Reidy, chief financial officer for the Roman

Catholic Diocese of Bridgeport.

"Newtown has not stopped growing. It is one of the major issues facing the

town," said Mr Reidy, who also is a member of St Rose parish. "The parish has

to ask [itself] with the present growth, where will it be in 10 years?"

The diocese owns land on Toddy Hill Road that for years was earmarked as the

possible site of a new church to serve the Sandy Hook area. But Bishop Egan

decided expansion of the existing church is preferable to dividing the parish

into two separate churches. A division would require a duplication of staffing

and facilities and would impact all aspects of the existing parish community,

church officials explained.

"The bishop said that he won't split the parish," Msgr Birge said. "Instead,

we need to look at the needs of our physical plant and the possibility of

expanding."

For many years St Rose Church owned the property involved in last week's

purchase. The building and .79 acres of land was sold in 1970 by then pastor

Walter R. Conroy and the church trustees, with the church retaining the right

of first refusal in any subsequent sale.

The property changed hands several times since then. Most recently, it was

sold in 1990 for $575,000 and in 1995 for $463,000, according to the town

clerk's office. When it went on the market earlier this year for $495,000,

Western Connecticut Federal Credit Union offered $440,000.

"The parish had the right to purchase it for the same price -- no

negotiating," said Sylvia Launder, financial administrator at St Rose.

A mortgage loan was obtained from Union Savings Bank with the diocese as the

guarantor. But the building won't be used by the parish immediately.

"The tenants will be offered two-year leases, and if at the end of the two

years, we are not ready to move over there, they will be offered an

opportunity to stay. It could be as long as three or four years," Mrs Launder

said. The current tenants include the McLachlan Insurance agency; attorneys

Murphy & Murphy PC, and Key Realty.

Mrs Launder said the plan is to use the former convent, which now serves as

parish offices and meeting rooms, as facilities for the religious education

program and for special classes that now meet in the basement of the school.

When this occurs, the parish offices will move into the building that the

church purchased last week.

"Religious education meets on Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday and has

nearly 1,200 students in grades kindergarten through eight," Mrs Launder said.

"The school has an enrollment of nearly 250 students, also grades kindergarten

through eight. And the religious education program for adults also is growing.

This was the driving factor to purchase the building."

Fire Code Violations

Membership in the church, the second built on the same site, has increased

significantly since it was constructed in 1969. There are now five Sunday

Masses, including one held at 5:30 pm on Saturday, and Msgr Birge has

indicated he may add another Mass at 4 pm on Saturday to alleviate

overcrowding at the 9 am and 10:30 am Masses on Sunday.

But on holidays and special celebrations, such as First Holy Communion and

Confirmation, crowded conditions in the church violate the state fire code,

according to George Lockwood, Newtown fire marshal. And even more serious, he

said, is the condition of the parish hall.

Built in 1879 as St Patrick's Hall and later renovated, the structure fails to

meet modern fire codes. The building has been cited many times and the parish

is under an abatement order requiring that action be taken to rectify the

problems.

"There are very serious problems with the whole hall," Mr Lockwood said. "No

one knows what is in the walls. They would have to tear all the walls out and

recover with sheet rock to meet the code. The stage doesn't meet any codes and

it shouldn't be used. It should be sprinkled and must have more than one means

of egress."

Because the hall is used extensively by the school, the building must be

brought up to code quickly for the safety of the children, Mr Lockwood said.

But a sprinkler system could cost $200,000 or more and resheeting the walls

might be $60,000, an investment that is questionable considering the overall

condition of the building.

"In my opinion, the best thing to do is to tear it down," Mr Lockwood said.

Millennium Committee

Msgr Birge established a Millennium Committee, which has met twice in the past

two months. The committee's responsibilities include evaluating the space

needs of the church and school facilities and planning religious events to

celebrate the year 2000.

"What do we need by way of buildings in the parish?" Msgr Birge asked the

Millennium Committee at its last meeting. "Do we need a larger church? Do we

need a new hall/gymnasium?"

Most committee members agreed that a new hall is the first priority. And, they

said, at the very least a "crying room" is needed in the church where parents

can sit with infants and small children and still be able to view and hear the

Mass.

John Madzula, an architect and parish member, displayed what he described as

"very preliminary" sketches of possible expansion projects to provide a

starting point for the discussions. Msgr Birge asked the committee members to

take some time this summer to look at expansion projects at other Catholic

churches. The committee will meet again in September to continue its

deliberations about what the long-range plans of the parish should include.

Mr Reidy said that when the parish finally puts together a plan, with

preliminary architectural drawings and a budget, it must be approved by the

bishop. The parish must raise 50 percent of the cost in cash or short-term

pledges before construction can begin; the remaining 50 percent would be

financed.

The process is complicated by the fact that renovation and expansion projects

can impact the use of the buildings. "If you do any work to the church, the

church may not be usable," Mr Reidy pointed out. "The same is true for the

hall."

"This is a major undertaking," he admitted. "Some building programs take years

to accomplish. It takes an awful lot of hard work."

Editor's note: On July 3, a new priest, the Rev John J. Castaldo, was

transferred to St Rose Church to serve as a parochial vicar. See related story

on the church news page.