On behalf of the members of the Major Fundraising Campaign Cabinet, and all our volunteers, we would like to thank you for your continued interest for Christ Church Cathedral and the Rising Up! Campaign for our new spire.
By way of an update, our construction is coming along. Started in early 2017, Phase 1 preparatory work, which included significant repairs of the tower masonry, is now complete. Parks Canada and Quebec Religious Heritage both contributed to this Phase.
Tenders were received in September 2018 for Phase 2 of our project, and after extensive negotiations to reduce costs, the Phase 2 contract was signed in mid-October 2019. In the course of Phase 2 the spire will be sliced in two, with the top third first removed and brought down onto a platform next to the Cathedral on the Union Street side. The remaining two-thirds will be stripped of its aluminum tiles, and the steel structure brought down to ground level.
The underlying structure will then be restored while the aluminium tiles that clad the spire are thoroughly cleaned and made ready for re-installation. The reverse process will then take place to re-instate the renewed spire to its proper position on top of the Cathedral. This will be the unique and most visible part of our project. All being well, we are anticipating that this would finish in the spring of 2022.
Please join us in regularly praying for the restoration project, that our Cathedral may bring glory to God here in Montreal for many generations to come. Thank you.
Eternal and generous God,
You have given us Christ Church Cathedral as a powerful symbol of your presence in Montreal, a gathering place for Anglicans in our diocese, and a place of ministry and mission in the heart of the city. Continue to bless our restoration project, our architects, consultants and all charged with the intricate and arduous labour involved.
We pray for the fundraising team and all those who have supported us so far.
Renew our vision, creative energy, and generosity, that we may together bring this project to completion, and glorify your name, through Jesus Christ our Lord, to whom our cathedral is dedicated. Amen