What’s going up

Published 5:00 am Saturday, October 25, 2008

What: St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church

Where: 2450 N.E. 27th St., Bend

Owner: St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church

General contractor: Kirby Nagelhout Construction, Bend

Architect: Becker Architects, Kirkland, Wash.

Engineer: Froelich Consulting Engineers Inc., Bend, structural; Bussard Williams LLC, Bend, civil

Financing: Parish capital fund drive and the Roman Catholic Diocese of Baker

Cost: $5 million

Web site: www.stfrancisbend.org

Contact: 541-382-3631

Details: Work is under way on the new St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church, which will have twice the capacity of the 1921 Gothic-style church in downtown Bend and will seat roughly 800 parishioners, said Joe La Casse, a parishioner who serves on the church’s building committee.

“Columns are being poured at the present time,” he said. “We think it’s going to be a beautiful facility.”

The 16,000-square-foot church, which will have stained-glass windows fronting 27th Street, will feature a contemporary design with an unusual roof line, the peak of which will be centered above the altar in the sanctuary, La Casse said.

Currently, services are held at the church on Lava Road in downtown Bend and in the existing community center on 27th Street. The old church will continue to be used after completion of work, which is expected by early summer 2009, La Casse said.

Bend’s Catholic parish serves an estimated 1,600 families, according to previous reports in The Bulletin.

The new church will be the centerpiece of a long-term growth plan created in the 1980s, La Casse said.

St. Francis built a 60,000-square-foot Catholic Center at the north end of the 17-acre, parish-owned property in 2000, which includes a school serving students from kindergarten through eighth grade, a large community center and administrative offices.

Future plans for the southern portion of the property include new educational offices and a youth center, La Casse said.

— Jeff McDonald, The Bulletin