St. Patrick Cathedral aims for renovation milestone by Holy Week

CHARLOTTE — With significant progress on renovations of St. Patrick Cathedral in Charlotte, the historic building may reopen to parishioners just in time for Holy Week and Easter.

Renovations began last fall to repair water damage to the interior plaster ceiling and walls, and to address other deterioration in the 84-yearold church.

Renovations also include replacement of failing roofing and flashing, replacement of concrete parapet caps, and repair of gutters and underground storm drainage systems.

“We’re pleased at how the renovation work is progressing, thanks to the cathedral’s leadership and our strong construction partners,” said Emmett Sapp, director of construction for the Diocese of Charlotte. “There are always challenges whenever you work on an historic structure, and we not only want to restore the function of the building but we are committed to retaining the character that makes St. Patrick distinctive and preserving it for future generations.”

Work will resume after Easter, but Sapp said the diocese does not anticipate another longterm closure of the church.

Built as a parish church in 1939, St. Patrick was elevated to serve as the cathedral when the Diocese of Charlotte was founded in 1972.

A cathedral serves as the seat, or home church, of the bishop in a diocese.

Over the eight decades since the church was built, signs of the building’s age became apparent with cracks occurring in the plaster throughout the building interior.

Minor renovations occurred over the years, however, recognizing the need for broader repairs, the diocese included the restoration of the cathedral as one of the projects to be funded by its 2015 “Forward in Faith, Hope, and Love” campaign.

Meanwhile, the diocese also recently formed a committee to consider the feasibility of building a new cathedral to provide a more functional facility and serve a growing Catholic population well into the future.

— Catholic News Herald

Diocese adopts new construction process to enhance capital projects, stewardship

SUEANN HOWELL sahowell@charlottediocese.org

CHARLOTTE — Faced with tremendous growth and the increasing complexity of construction projects, the Diocese of Charlotte has created a new construction management process to enhance collaboration and strategic investment in capital projects across the diocese.

The process brings together all stakeholders from parishes, schools and the diocese who are involved in construction projects costing $1 million or more to hone plans early in the process, so that everyone is working toward a common vision.

“We’ve seen so much growth in our diocese that it’s critical for us to ensure our building program will efficiently and effectively accommodate our needs for new schools, churches and other projects,” said Monsignor Patrick Winslow, vicar general and chancellor of the diocese, and the architect of the new approach. “A key element is for parishes, schools and the diocese to get aligned early and check-in often so we can produce the best possible result and make the best use of the Church’s resources.”

The new process promotes the engagement of stakeholders and requires teamwork from the initial project concept through completion of construction and dedication of a space. The diocese and the parish or school involved form a single team to execute plans established during a strategic planning process.

As part of the new approach, the diocese restructured and divided the growing responsibilities of its properties staff to create two departments: n The Office of Construction will oversee major building projects and offer project management services at the diocese’s 92 parishes and missions, 20 schools, and diocesan facilities. n The Office of Properties will handle real estate acquisition and disposition, small to mid-size renovations and construction, and maintenance and preservation of an array of schools and other diocesan properties.

Emmett Sapp, who served as construction manager for the Properties Office for more than four years, will lead the new Construction Office. He will oversee two project managers as his team assists pastors, Catholic schools administrators, and capital project stakeholders through the streamlined process to plan and execute large capital projects.

Most recently, Sapp and his team oversaw the completion of the $6.4 million Fulford Athletic & Activity Center at Christ the King High School in Huntersville.

Sapp is excited about his new role and the promise of the diocese’s new approach.

“We work to establish a common vision from the beginning, before we start spending a lot of time, effort and financial resources on a project,” he said.

The diocese began dissecting and rebuilding the process nearly two years ago, with input from stakeholders across the diocese.

“With the committed leadership and personal attention of Monsignor Winslow, the team dedicated significant time and attention toward improving project