 |
|||||||||
 |
|||||||||
|
|||||||||
December
11, 2006
VOL.
44, NO. 22Oakland,
CA
Bishop clarifies plans for new high school
A formal fundraising
campaign to secure at least $75 million needed to build Pope John Paul
II Catholic High School in Livermore has been postponed until all the
financing for the new Cathedral of Christ the Light has been secured.
The high school’s steering committee had hoped to begin major fundraising
early next year.
However, in a meeting with the committee late last month, Bishop Allen
Vigneron told them that the high school project has reached a critical
stage where his leadership is required and that he cannot focus on that
effort until the financing and building of the cathedral is complete.
He said his decision came after consultation with the diocesan finance
council which affirmed that two major capital campaigns cannot be carried
out simultaneously.
To date, the cathedral project has raised $91.3 million in gifts and pledges
towards the $131 million needed to build the cathedral center in downtown
Oakland. Construction at the corner of Grand Avenue and Harrison Street
is expected to be finished by the middle of 2008.
Bishop Vigneron, in a statement sent to all parishes in the diocese about
the postponement, said that the “tremendous scope” of the
cathedral project makes it “difficult to put reasonable timelines”
as to when the fundraising for the cathedral will be concluded.
He said that the cathedral center will be a “vital component”
of the diocese’s educational ministry and a “foremost resource
for worship and works of evangelization, teaching and service.”
He emphasized his strong commitment to “high quality, accessible”
Catholic education in the diocese and said that several aspects of the
new high school will continue to move forward.
These include finalizing the design, securing all the necessary building
permits, building an access road through the property from the Springtown
exit off the 580 freeway, and creating the school’s governance,
financial and administrative structures.
Holy Names Sister Barbara Bray, assistant superintendent of schools who
is overseeing the project, said these elements will likely take up to
a year or more to complete. She said that efforts to identify possible
donors will also continue. Signature Properties, a real estate development
company, has covered much of the start-up costs already incurred.
The school will be built on 120 acres co-owned by the diocese and Catholic
cemeteries. The 178,000 square-foot building will sit on 32 acres, surrounded
by sports fields, parking, and scenic open space.
The campus is planned for 1,200 students, Sister Bray said. It will begin
with freshman and sophomore classes.
Studies conducted for the diocese over the past 10 years have shown that
Tri-Valley parents are eager for a Catholic high school in their area.
Last October, more than 3000 signatures in support of the school were
presented to the Livermore City Council, which voted unanimously in favor
of construction.
The school will be the first new high school in the diocese since 1965
when Carondelet and De La Salle high schools opened in Concord and Moreau
Catholic opened in Hayward.
