The Catholic Community of South Baltimore (CCSB) has started construction on a new flooring project at Our Lady of Good Counsel church in Locust Point. The project will replace an approximately 20-year-old blue carpet with hardwood flooring.
CCSB Pastor Rev. Patrick M. Carrion told SouthBMore.com the goal is to restore the original hardwood flooring under the carpet but, depending on the condition, a new hardwood floor is also a possibility. Some subflooring will also be repaired. The project will cover about 4,000 sq. ft. in the nave and sanctuary of the church.
CCSB is working with architect James Suttner of Rohrer Studios on the project.
Construction kicked off this week and the project is expected to be completed in June. The pews in the nave will be removed while the floor is renovated. This will involve removing asbestos tiles at the footing of the pews, as well as asbestos abatement.
There will be a slightly new pew arrangement after the floors are completed. The very last pew in the back of the church is being removed to create more room, a wider aisle, and a gathering space in the back of the church near the entrances. Half of the very first pew at the front of the church, as well as a row in the middle of the church, will be removed to allow handicap-accessible seating.
Along with the sanctuary and nave, flooring will be restored or replaced in the devotional area, confessionals, and on the stairs to the loft.
As part of the project, a radiator will also be removed on each side of the front of the church, the marble floor will be restored at each alter, and the lector stand will be reconfigured.
The flooring project has been in planning since the Fall 2017. The project is expected to cost $180,000 to $210,000 and will be covered by Our Lady of Good Counsel savings and donations. The Sunday mass at 11am at Our Lady of Good Counsel will be moved to Holy Cross at 110 E. West St. in Federal Hill during the duration of the project.
The flooring project was partially delayed as Our Lady of Good Counsel needed a new boiler, which was replaced in recent months. All three CCSB churches, Our Lady of Good Counsel, Holy Cross, and St. Mary Star of the Sea, which his also in Federal Hill, received new boilers in the past year.
In recent years, Our Lady of Good Counsel also renovated the hall in the basement and completed roof and drywall repairs.
Phase One of a new paint job of the interior of Holy Cross was completed in 2018. This phase addressed the sanctuary of the church. Phase Two, which will address the nave, has been delayed after the church’s boiler needed a replacement. Rev. Carrion told SoutBMore.com that Phase Two will likely not begin this year.
CCSB is also currently fundraising for an estimated $175,000 repair of the bell tower at St. Mary Star of the Sea.
Photo Current blue carpeting courtesy of CCSB
Rendering of the flooring project courtesy of CCSB
via https://www.southbmore.com/2019/03/13/new-flooring-project-begins-at-our-lady-of-good-counsel-in-locust-point/
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