St. Pius X Church expansion underway

Portland Diocese Archbishop John G. Vlazny blessed the groundbreaking for St. Pius X's new additions last month.

In 2008, St. Pius X Catholic Church, located in the heart of Cedar Mill on Saltzman Road, announced its Master Plan for expansion of the church and the school. This ambitious plan included building a new gymnasium, expanding the main church building, reconfiguring parking areas and several other projects. The plan was a result of studies of projected growth, deficiencies in the existing facilities, and focus groups and surveys of parishioners.

The parish broke ground for Phase 1 of the expansion in October. This phase will include sound quality upgrades in the church building—a feature that has been widely requested by many parishioners; building a new Athletic Center—a double gymnasium with storage space underneath; converting the existing gym to a Multipurpose Center, which will serve in part as the school cafeteria; converting the existing cafeteria to classrooms.

The current project represents approximately one-third of the entire Master Plan. Additional expansion of the school and expansion of the church buildings will continue in Phases 2 and 3. The fundraising goal for Phase 1 is $3,500,000. Pam Henningsen, Communication Chair, says, "We are blessed to have our capital campaign supported by the generosity of our parishioners and the community through donations, fundraising events, gifts and grants."

The school, which currently serves 291 students from Kindergarten through eighth grade, will add three new classrooms. The new gym will enable more after-school and athletic programs to be offered.

Some of the large fir trees near the center of the property had to be removed because of their health and to make room for the new gym. Heavy construction is expected to begin in Spring 2011, and Frainey says it will have, "little effect on traffic on adjacent roads."

She continues, "St. Pius X is one of the largest parishes in the Portland area and is home to a 80 ministries, outreach services and community support programs. As part of the Cedar Mill Town Center, we welcome everyone to come find out what is going on at St. Pius X and invite them to explore the possibility of taking part in some of the programs offered. Check us out at www.stpius.org."

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