Capital Campaign Update at Mass
Fr. Bob Announcement at all December 9 & 10, 2006 Masses
I want to thank all of you who participated
in the short-parish-wide survey that was done on November 18-19 regarding our Building Project.I’m about to present a number of figures to you, but I don’t want you to worry that you’re going to miss something.I plan to mail to all registered households a copy of this announcement along with more details on the recent survey.So you don’t need to take notes!As you may recall, in the recent Building Project Proposal timeline mailed to you, we promised that we would report back to you this weekend on the results of the survey.The results of the survey, which included 781 responses, have led Chancery staff and me to conclude that it’s not possible at this time to raise the $7 million needed to complete the 2002 Phase I project.The proposed Phase I project, estimated to cost $5.2 million,included the construction of a new church; site improvements; remodel of the existing church building into a multi-purpose facility-gymnasium and the enclosure of the school breezeway. Pledges for the $5.2 million campaign in 2002amounted to about $2 million. $962,000, or less than half of what was pledged, has been collected.Of the funds collected, $192,000 was spent on feasibility studies,campaign expenses and architectural fees.The remaining $770,000 is in a bank account accruing 5% interest. So what do we do next?The survey made it clear that the people of our community are open to discussions on the future of our campus. Therefore, I intend to meet with our leadership to determine next steps. Do we complete just part of Phase I as a project? Do we accomplish elements of Phases II or III? Do we postpone any capital improvements? And, very importantly, what do we do with the funds we have already collected? The answer to these questions will be determined by our parish leadership as I meet with them over the next few months.My intent is that this process to determine our next steps will be open and transparentand that what we want as a community will be achieved, with the help of God and according to God’s will.