St. Julia Renovation: Well On Its Way

Have you noticed anything different outside of St. Julia Church?

Contractors took advantage of last week’s mild temperatures to complete work on its front steps and terrace, removing, replacing and resetting thousands of bricks in the process.

The refurbished steps are part of a $2.9 million renovation to the church’s interior and exterior that members and church officials hope will be completed by the spring, changes planned "to render the sanctuary more accessible and visible, to spruce up the interior finishes, and to make it more comfortable and functional with better lighting, sound projection, accessibility and air conditioning," said Chantal Buchanan.

Buchanan, a longtime parishioner at St. Julia who has also served on the church’s building and communications committees, said that the church’s pastor, Father George Evans, reconvened a defunct building committee in 2006 after analysis revealed that exterior repairs were becoming critical and determined the scope of work to be completed.

Started in September, exterior repairs to date have included rebuilding buttresses and refurbishing the bell tower at the back of the church as well as reconstructing the walkway and entrance steps, which was completed last week.

That portion of the renovation involved some 7,000 bricks, with contractor John Tappas of US Pavement estimating that he and co-contractor Steve Bosselman “probably moved and relocated about 12,000 bricks” during the week-long project.

Tappas noted the mild weather facilitated workers’ ability to turn the project around so quickly, saying, “It might have been hard to finish this in (another) January.”

According to Buchanan, efforts during the winter months will be focused on completing interior renovations in accordance with “Built of Living Stone,” a document on liturgical architecture that “emphasizes fostering more (parishioner) participation,” such as removing the altar rail and extending the sanctuary area.

“Ideally, if you were building a new church now, you would build the altar in the middle, almost like a table with chairs around it,” explained Buchanan. “We’re not doing that, or changing the footprint, but we’re bringing the sanctuary area out into the congregation for more movement and visibility.”

Other changes to come include enhancements to the lighting and sound systems as well as adding air conditioning and refurbishing the heating system. During the renovation, parishioners will continue attending Mass in the parish hall or at the St. Julia sister parish in Lincoln.

“Everyone has been so patient” throughout the process, said Buchanan, adding that funds for the renovation were raised by an ongoing capital campaign that has left the church “very well along the way of completely funding” it.