CHARLOTTE — Summer is a busy time for the Diocese of Charlotte Properties Office. Working in conjunction with parishes and Catholic schools around western North Carolina on building projects and needed improvements, the Properties staff manages an extensive to-do list of maintenance projects for the Catholic schools, parishes and others.
This summer there dozens of school maintenance projects, ranging from carpet and tile replacement, to painting and ordering replacement classroom furniture and equipment for the coming school year.
Pictured: Construction on a 27,000-square-foot addition to Christ the King High School in Huntersville is expected to be completed not long after the new school year begins Aug 22. (Photo provided by Emmett Sapp)
Two of the major projects under way are:
- At Christ the King High School in Huntersville, a two-story classroom expansion project is nearing completion, with approximately 27,000 square feet of new construction – more than doubling the school’s total square footage.
The new two-story building includes a cafeteria, large multipurpose room for drama and band, a fabrication shop, three science classrooms and eight general purpose classrooms to accommodate Christ the King High School’s growing student population. Among other things, the additional classroom space will be used for art, industrial design, theater, music, guitar, chemistry, biology, earth science, environmental science, information technology, cyber communications and the traditional liberal arts subjects. The building will also have multiple common areas for students to work collaboratively.
“This summer is a very exciting time at Christ the King Catholic High School,” said Dr. Carl Semmler, principal.
Two classrooms in the existing building are also being repurposed for use as an administration office, as previously the school did not have designated administrative offices. That space will include a new vestibule, main office, administrative offices, guidance offices and a conference room.
A new 12-inch water main has also been installed to improve water pressure to the school.
The school is also being updated with additional safety features, including door lock card readers, a double locked vestibule, security cameras and direct communication to first responders.
“We have also received funds from our Silver and Blue Fund and an anonymous donor which will enable us to install two new scoreboards, update our field goals, top dress our athletic fields, create additional parking and equip a current classroom with the infrastructure to become a fitness center this October,” Semmler said.
“The construction on the extension is expected to be completed by Labor Day weekend,” Semmler said. That won’t be before school starts on Aug. 22, but school and diocesan leaders are putting in place plans to temporarily locate students as needed in the existing building until the new building is finished.
The estimated $11 million project is being funded through the Mecklenburg Area Catholic Schools capital fee.
- At Our Lady of the Assumption School in Charlotte, a new 2,400-square-foot “cafetorium” space is nearly complete and is expected to be finished before the beginning of classes next month. A $450,000 grant from a private donor is funding the project, as well as the conversion of the school’s existing library into a STEM lab that includes audiovisual room updates and a new “maker space” at the school that will provide students a creative space to learn through making.
Other projects are also under way, including:
- St. Joseph College Seminary in Charlotte, going into its third year of operation, is expanding into another space adjacent to the St. Ann Church campus. Six more men are entering the college seminary program this fall – bringing the total enrollment to 22 – so a home previously occupied by the Sisters of St. Joseph on Willow Oak Road is being converted into additional living space for them. The college seminary also houses men in two other houses adjacent to the church property.
Diocesan officials closed last September on a 50-acre site in Mount Holly for the college seminary’s permanent location. Diocesan leaders have selected Edifice Inc. of Charlotte as the general contractor for the $20 million project, which is being split up into several phases of development. The first phase will begin this fall, with general grading and clearing, erosion control and site preparation for a building pad. Final permitting is still wrapping up, and after that a groundbreaking will hopefully be scheduled for sometime this fall, diocesan leaders said.
Fundraising efforts to construct the seminary building will continue outside the diocese and within the diocese later this year and next year.
- Old St. Joseph Church in Mount Holly is also in the midst of a restoration. The 175-year-old church has seen repairs made to the roof, floors and other corrections to architectural weaknesses in the historic structure. This project was expected to cost $100,000 to address the most critical issues. Additional funds will be needed to finish the restoration. Fundraising efforts in the community will take place later in 2018 to raise these additional funds.
Old St. Joseph Church was built in 1843 for and by Irish immigrants, who had come to mine for gold along the Ca-tawba River. It is the oldest Catholic church still standing in the state and is an official state and U.S. historical site. Today it is used only for special occasions, such as the feasts of St. Patrick and St. Joseph in March.
— SueAnn Howell, senior reporter